COMMUNITY FOUNDATION MOVING ON UP WITH AWARDS WIN

An innovative enterprise project which is tackling unemployment amongst young people in South Yorkshire has been recognised with a regional award.

The Moving on Up (MOU) young people and employment programme has been named winner of the Social Impact Initiative of the Year category at the 2023 South Yorkshire Business Awards.

MOU was developed by South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation (SYCF) to help bridge the gap between employment, skills and education amongst 14- to 30-year-olds in the region.

Since being launched in 2021, the MOU programme has allocated a total of £313,612.89 to 24 community groups and organisations over two rounds of funding.

Roundabout, Barnsley-based Serenity and Grow Sheffield are just some of the projects and organisation which have benefitted from the grant funding. Successful groups were allocated up to £5,000 a year, over three years.

Moving On Up was created in response to findings from SYCF’s latest Vital Signs research, which is carried out every three years to respond to the needs of the communities across South Yorkshire.

Ruth Willis, Chief Executive of South Yorkshire’s Community Foundation – the largest local grant giving charity in the region, said: “This award win is wonderful recognition for a truly unique project which has been developed by listening to the needs of the communities we live and work in.

“All the funded programmes have been incredibly successful in supporting young people’s enterprise ambitions by arming them with the skills and training needed to succeed.”

The Suit Works is a Sheffield-based charity which helps unemployed people succeed at interviews by building confidence through personal styling and interview coaching. It received £14,000 of MOU funding over three years.

Faye Mellors, Chief Executive of The Suit Works, said: “The Suit Works specialises in providing a service which not only supports the client to select the right clothes for their interview, but also gives them a boost of confidence from such a great service.

“With the support of the Moving on Up grant funding, we were able to help a total of 121 young people – exceeding our original target of 115.”

The regional awards, run by Business Awards UK, celebrate the diversity of UK businesses from small organisations to multi-national enterprises.

For more information about South Yorkshire Community Foundation visit www.sycf.org.uk.