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Life as a Kickstarter
Sep 28, 2021
Life as a Kickstarter
Not only do we provide assistance and advice about the Government’s Kickstart scheme, but we also employ two of our very own Kickstarters! Brandon
and Manpreet, both joined us during the summer and are really getting stuck into their roles here at Reward Risk Management, they’ve been a tremendous asset to us so far.
The Kickstart Scheme is a government funded scheme that provides funding to employers to create jobs for 16–24-year-olds on universal credit, at risk of long-term unemployment. An Employer of any size can enrol on the scheme and access funding for:
• 100% of the National Minimum Wage (or National Living Wage depending on the age of the employee) for up to 25 hours per week for a total of 6 months.
• Associated Employer National Insurance contributions.
• Minimum automatic enrolment pension contributions.
Employers can take advantage of this funding up until 31st December 2021 (you will get funding until 30th June 2022 if your employee starts their job on 31st December 2021.) Further funding is also available for training and support so that the employee on the scheme can access a job in the future.
We asked Brandon and Manpreet about their experience with the scheme so far:
How did you first find out about the Kickstart Scheme?
Manpreet:
“My work coach told me about the Kickstart scheme because I wanted to work in the HR industry.”
Brandon:
“The Job Centre discussed it with me whilst I was looking for a job during covid.”
How easy was the process – from application to being offered a position?
Manpreet:
“The process was good. It was really easy because all you need to do is send your C.V and cover letter to make yourself stand out from the crowd.”
Brandon:
“Very easy, especially as employers were far more proactive than usual.”
What happened during your first week on the job?
Manpreet:
“In my first week I was nervous because I was new, but everyone made me feel welcome and were friendly. I learned more about the company and what my role was in the job. I got given a laptop to work from home.”
Brandon:
“A discussion about the job role, the Company and training. Largely introductory but I did get some research and analysing to do in the first week as well.”
What training have you completed during your time so far?
Manpreet:
“How to provide a number of administration functions to support delivery of HR and Pay & Reward services to clients of the consultancy.
• Ensuring that clients details are correctly recorded in the database.
• Basic administrative duties such as emails, scanning, copying, printing and writing up reports.
• Researching information from the internet for HR functions for Pay and Reward and input the results into relevant databases.
• Supporting the company job evaluation processes by filing job descriptions and other job role data received from clients, creating job lists, and ensuring information matches that provided by the clients.”
Brandon:
“Research and discussion on different areas of HR and businesses, as well as expanding my Excel skills.”
What skills do you feel you can take away from this role?
Manpreet:
“The skills I would take with me is excellent communication and ‘people’ skills. The ability to work under pressure and to meet targets, having good organisational and administrative skills.”
Brandon:
“Self-motivation, greater self-management and awareness of how companies run. My excel and research skills have also improved.”
What are your plans for the future?
Manpreet:
“My plan for the future is to continue working at Reward Risk and to gain experience that I need to work in HR so I can carry these skills with me. In the future, I am hoping to do a master's degree in HR because I would like to go further with my education and strengthen my experience.”
Brandon:
“Hopefully stay at the company continuing to do work on a more permanent basis, though if not, I feel far more confident in my greater work experience and job seeking ability, not to mention the skills I’ve learned and improved.”
If you would like to find out more about the Kickstart Scheme, please contact us on 07415 974 004 or email andrewc@rewardrisk.co.uk
Alternatively, to sign up visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apply-for-a-kickstart-scheme-grant
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