South West College (SWC), in collaboration with Fermanagh and Omagh District Council have been successful in securing funding from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund to enable the continuity of the employability programmes offered by both organisations.

The new Rural Economic Accelerator Programme (REAP) will be allocated funding of £2.8m to support economically inactive people across the council districts of Fermanagh and Omagh and Mid Ulster.

In Mid-Ulster, SWC will deliver with partners First Steps Women’s Centre and South Tyrone Empowerment Programme, while in Fermanagh and Omagh, the Council will deliver with partners in Fermanagh Rural Community Initiative.

The SWC SUSE+ Programme, and the Council’s ASPIRE Programme, operated under the Northern Ireland European Social Fund (ESF) Programme and were part-funded by the ESF and the Department for the Economy.

The programmes had operated locally, complementing each other, for a period of eight years between 2015 and 2023.

Both programmes completed delivery on March 31, 2023, and in their time supported thousands of participants to attain knowledge and skills to move towards employment.

Marking the end of the ASPIRE Programme at a recent recognition event in Strule Arts Centre, the Council Chair, Councillor Barry McElduff, said: “There is a real and compelling need for programmes like ASPIRE in the district to ensure opportunity for everyone.

“The benefits to participants are clear to see. This is evident in the collaborative approach implemented by the Council, with delivery partners, training providers, employers and support organisations across the district who have jointly contributed to its success over the eight years.”

It is expected that the new programme will become operational during this month, with funding secured until March 31, 2025.

Another organisation which has an office in Fermanagh and has benefitted from the UK Shared Prosperity Fund is Action Mental Health (AMH), which received £12 million in the funding.

AMH’s Chief Executive Officer David Babington welcomed the funding, but cautioned there is still significant work to be done to bridge the funding shortfall.

He said: “We’re delighted with the announcement that our SkillSET consortium successfully secured two years of funding to deliver employment and training support for people with disabilities.

“However, this new type of support under SPF is very different to previous provision, delivered under the ESF programme, and as a result we have grave concerns that those most in need and furthest from the workplace will be unsupported.

“Alongside this change in support, there is also a significant funding shortfall, and all providers are now grappling with adjusting their delivery of support whilst dealing with fewer resources.

“AMH will continue to work with sector colleagues to make the case to the UK Government and NI Departments that additional funding is required rapidly to cover the shortfall.

“The sector is very used to a flexible approach requiring innovation and service reconfiguration, but providers like AMH are delivering core services on behalf of the Health Trusts, and vulnerable clients not covered under this new SPF funding will still need support,” he warned.