news & events
May 2010 - Graduate Employment Mentoring Scheme - we will shortly be recruiting for the 2nd cohort
The Centre for Partnership are about to commence the recruitment process for the second cohort of graduates for our GEMS programme, which we deliver on behalf of Bradford Council. If you are interested in applying for the scheme, you must fit and be able to provide proof of, the following criteria:
- You must hold a degree
- You must have been unemployed for at least 3 months
- You must live in Bradford
- You must be willing and able to commit fully to a 14 week intensive programme commencing 17th May 2010
Key dates of the programme are as follows:
- Closing Date for applications - Tuesday 6th April 2010
- Interviews and Assessments - week commencing 12th April 2010
- Induction Week - week commencing 17th May 2010 (5 days)
- Commencement of 12 week work placement period - 21st May 2010
- Final Graduate Exhibition - 18th August 2010
Each graduate is supported through the GEM programme with a £50 weekly paid bursary and a £600 lump sum on successful completion of the programme. Any local graduates interested in applying to join the next round of the GEM programme can contact Sadia Ahmed at The Centre for Partnership on 0845 660 600 for an informal discussion, or email sadia.ahmed@incommunities.co.uk
You can read about the scheme on the press release information below. Please download the advert here and an application form here.
IMPORTANT: Remember to save the application form on your own PC before starting to complete.
22nd December 2009 Press Release
Housing partners in ‘gem’ job scheme for graduates
Ten local graduates are getting a taster of careers in the housing sector thanks to a new scheme.
The Graduate Employment Mentoring (GEM) programme is being delivered by The Centre for Partnership – a partnership between consultants Sutton Smith and Incommunities – and aims to encourage unemployed young people to build successful careers for themselves.
The GEM programme is being run on behalf of Bradford Council with the help of funding from the government’s Working Neighbourhood Fund.
After spending an initial induction period with Incommunities including personal development training, the local graduates are gaining valuable work placement experience in a number of different housing and community organisations. These include Accent, Wates Living Space, Firebird JVC development partnership, the City Centre Project, Smart Moves, Lovell Partnerships Ltd and the Bradford and District Youth Offending Team.
As part of the 14-week programme each graduate takes part in up to three different work placements. It is designed to offer them a varied and challenging time through practical work - from working with homelessness services to getting involved in estate refurbishment work.
The graduates will also learn key management skills in module-based training run by The Centre for Partnership. The training is nationally accredited by the Institute of Leadership and Management.
During the programme The Centre of Partnership is working with Incommunities’ open field employment service to provide each graduate with one to one mentoring to encourage them to succeed in the jobs market and learn business start up skills.
Ian Brewer, a Sociology graduate, is currently on a placement with Incommunities. He said: “The GEM programme offers a fantastic opportunity. I have previously worked in the charities and banking sectors and this programme will help me to retrain and hopefully build a career in social housing.”
Another placement graduate, Adnan Ud-Din, said: “The programme is a really good way of developing your skills and expertise in the career field you are looking for.”
Geraldine Howley, Incommunities Group Chief Executive, said: “Incommunities is delighted to be playing a key part in this new programme working with Bradford Council and local partners.
“As a major local employer we are committed to supporting Bradford graduates looking to build new careers and hopefully be a part of the district’s economic future.”
Trevor Smith, Director of The Centre for Partnership, said: “This exciting new employment scheme aims to enhance the career potential of each participant by offering them a high quality programme of challenging work placements and training in project management and management skills.
“The Centre for Partnership is delighted to be working with staff from Incommunities – the area’s biggest social landlord – Bradford Council and a range of local partners.
Coun Adrian Naylor, Bradford Council’s Executive Member for Regeneration and Economy, said: “This scheme is very welcome in the current economic climate and will hopefully prove to be a valuable tool to enable these young people to find employment and even successful careers.”
John Flower, Project Director ofWates Living Space (North East Region) believes that the programme will have a positive impact on the graduates’ chances of gaining employment. He said: “Wates Living Space is excited to be part of the GEM programme. This programme will provide greatly needed experience and opportunities for graduates living in Bradford who in these tough economic times are struggling to get on the career ladder.”
At the end of the programme, the graduates will host an exhibition for key partners in the housing sector to highlight the skills they have learnt and give their feedback.
Each graduate is supported through the GEM programme with a weekly paid bursary. Any local graduates interested in applying to join the next round of the GEM programme should contact Amanda Livermore at The Centre for Partnership on 0845 660 600.
The November cohort of GEM Graduates are photographed
with Geraldine Howley, Group Chief Executive, Incommunities.
The first day of the GEM induction programme.
National Federation of Housing Conference and Social Housing Exhibition 2009
The Centre for Partnership had a great week on our stand at the conference, with the successful launch of the Governance Standard.
September 2009 - The Centre for Partnership Raises the Standard for Housing Providers
With the spotlight increasingly on governance and the need for housing housing providers to meet the requirements of regulators, the arrival of the Centre for Partnership on the social housing scene is very timely.
The Centre for Partnership was set up as a Limited Liability Partnership between Incommunities Housing Association and change consultants, Sutton Smith Ltd, to help housing providers achieve excellence in a range of standards.
The Governance Standard and The Partnership Standard are the only two standards of their type in the UK which are accredited. Both standards have been recognised by the National Housing Federation.
Martin Smith, Chair of Incommunities Board believes that changes in the way that social housing is regulated means that the quality of governance and leadership will be looked at more closely.
“The Centre for Partnership provides a solution to that problem by introducing a range of accredited standards which provide a benchmark of good practice. Accreditation is the way forward for social housing organisations because not only does it allow housing providers to measure their own practices against best practice, but it also reassures the regulators.”
Trevor Smith, one of the founding Directors of the Centre for Partnership, explains that the development of standards for social housing providers emerged from the needs of a number of housing associations that he has been working with for many years.
“By working as a consultant for both small and large housing providers, it became clear to me that what housing organisations were looking for was a way to assess how well their organisations were performing in key functions critical to their organisations’ success.”
The answer lay in establishing a set of standards that would enable housing providers to learn from best practice, develop clear and attainable action plans for improvement and provide evidence of achievement for regulators.
A team of experts was brought together to form the Centre for Partnership to develop not just a range of standards in key business operations, but also introduce accreditation with an eye to lighter touch regulation.
For Trevor Smith, the Centre for Partnership standards are not just about satisfying the regulators, important as that may be, but also to benchmark their performance, for example on key governance function. “Achieving our standards has enabled the organisations we have worked with to radically improve their working practices and transform their organisations from top to bottom.”
