Charity finds work for hundreds of people after securing funding deal
A £200,000 investment in a Birmingham-based charity by the city council’s funding arm has been repaid by the organisation helping hundreds of previously unemployed people find jobs.
The Jericho Foundation was backed by Finance Birmingham in 2012. The backing initially enabled Jericho to create 24 jobs within its core staff; although this has grown to 70 over the last four years.
It has also helped 218 previously unemployed people find paid supported work placements or apprenticeships lasting between six and 24 months.
The foundation is a charity which aims to break down barriers in society and support disadvantaged people to become fulfilled, skilled and employed. It works with a broad variety of deprived people who are struggling, including young people, ex-offenders, homeless people and survivors of modern slavery.
It provides work experience or paid employment through its network of social enterprises. Alongside this, Jericho delivers a holistic package of support, guidance and training which is tailored to each person’s own needs.
Richard Beard, Jericho chief executive, said: “The Finance Birmingham and Birmingham City Council assistance came at a crucial point in the Foundation’s development. The loan helped us to significantly scale up some of our social enterprises, create local jobs and provide training and employment opportunities to even more people in real need.”
Clive Broadhurst, portfolio director at Finance Birmingham, said: “As a unique public-private partnership, Finance Birmingham helps SMEs to realise their ambitions for growth. We are delighted that with our support the Jericho Foundation has made such a material difference to the skill base and employment prospects of disadvantaged people across a number of sectors so critical to the growth of the Midlands region.”
The funding was originally provided by the city council’s £10m Business Loan Fund, managed by Finance Birmingham. More recently Finance Birmingham has been working closely with several councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships to support SMEs across the UK.
