Mayor of Greater Manchester, Andy Burnham, has moved forward with proposals to rename job centres in the region.
Burnham, who has previously told the Department for Work and Pensions select committee that “rebranding” exercises aren’t sufficient to tackle employment, has proposed that job centres are rebranded into “Live Well” centres, as part of his strategy to encourage residents back to work.
Funding has now been allocated to the scheme, with £10 million given to kick-start the Live Well Development.
The project aims to establish physical centres, with comprehensive support expected to be superior to existing job centre services.
Burnham aims to bring a variety of voluntary and community organisations into the service, to improve support on a wider range of unemployment issues including housing and health.
He states that too many of Manchester’s residents are “held back by barriers like poor housing, longstanding poverty, ill health, lack of training opportunities and digital exclusion” and argues that the new service will integrate approaches to tackle these more complex issues.
Live Well centres will see the Greater Manchester Combined Authority partner with NHS Greater Manchester, local authorities, voluntary and community groups as well as faith and social enterprise organisations.
It is planned that the funding for the rebrand will enable “tailored support” for jobseekers, though no timeline for the Live Well centres has yet been established.
