​Local businesses are invited to sign up to the Kickstart Scheme in Orkney.
 
The Kickstart Scheme have been developed by the UK Government to support young people into employment and help grow businesses.  Orkney Islands Council, Orkney Construction Training Group and the Economic Recovery Steering Group are looking to apply to become a Gateway organisation under ASPIRE Orkney.

It’s Thursday again which means only one thing, Jobs of the week. This week we have a variety of jobs from Administrative Assistants to Electrical Craftsman. 

​For more details or to see what jobs are on offer click on the link below.

Jobs of the Week is back for the first time since March 2020. We have a great selection of different opportunities available here in Orkney.

For more details or to see what jobs are on offer click on the link below.

DYW Groups across Scotland are preparing to launch the DYW Virtual Careers Fair during the week of 25 January 2021.  This will give young people the opportunity to learn about different careers that are available in their area.

We want to raise awareness of the diversity of careers firstly in the Food and Drink, Healthcare and Energy sectors.  More details will be made available nearer the time, so keep an eye on our social media pages.

We would like to wish all of our followers a very Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
 
This year has been a challenging one for all of us.  For DYW Orkney, many of the exciting plans we had for the year had to be put on hold as schools and businesses closed due to lockdown and we all stayed at home to keep ourselves and the wider community safe.
 
However, we learned how to adapt to new ways of working and found ways to overcome the challenges that we encountered.  We saw the same resilience in our schools and colleges with innovations in online teaching; businesses adapting to continue providing a vital service to their local communities, while individuals and communities worked to support and protect the most vulnerable.
 
As we reach the end of 2020, we hope you can all reflect on this past year and recognise that despite the hard times and challenges you encountered, you have adapted, overcome and achieved something – no matter how small.
 
This year we would like to give an extra special thanks to the young people, teachers and parents who dealt with the changes to education so brilliantly.  We also thank all the businesses and key workers who kept working throughout lockdown.  We’re grateful that many employers still found a way to engage with us during this year, and to those who understandably haven’t been able to get involved with our activities this year; we look forward to working with you all again soon.
 
All of our Christmas celebrations will look a little different this year and while it is sad we may not be able to see friends or family over the festive period this year, we can all look forward to seeing them as soon as it is safe to do so in 2021.
 
The DYW Orkney office will be closed between Monday 21 December 2020 and Tuesday 5 January 2021.

The latest issue of our Employer's Newsletter has been published.

In this issue, you can read about an equalities campaign which aims to promote diversity in the workplace; learn how to engage with local schools digitally and find details of a range of Graduate Apprenticeships being offered locally by Heriot-Watt University.
 
Finally, we are aware that many employers are having to consider making redundancies due to the economic impact of coronavirus.  If this is the case for your business, help and support is available through the PACE partnership and we provide you with contact details for PACE in the newsletter.

You can read the latest issue at the link below.

​A campaign which promotes and celebrates diversity in the workplace takes place later this month across Scotland.

The ‘A Job for Everybody’ campaign runs throughout the week Monday 16 – Friday 20 November 2020 and will be celebrated by Developing the Young Workforce groups across Scotland.

​Are you currently considering your next steps into education, employment or training but need some extra help?  Developing the Young Workforce Orkney and Skills Development Scotland have developed an online careers event to help you make decisions about your future.
 
The ‘Your Next Steps’ careers event provides information and advice on Work, Support and, Education and Training.  You will find a mix of videos, presentations and links to other websites to help you take your next step.

Heriot-Watt University are now offering three Graduate Apprenticeships to the Orkney business community, starting in January 2021.
 
Fully funded by Skills Development Scotland, Graduate Apprenticeships are a work-based qualification that are suitable for existing or new employees.  Like a full-time degree, the Graduate Apprenticeship takes four years to complete, with employees spending approximately 80% of their time working, and 20% of their time studying.

​Young people in Orkney are being asked for their thoughts on how local employment support agencies can best help them move into employment, training or further education.
 
The Youth Employment Survey has been developed to better understand how COVID-19 has impacted young people and their options regarding education, training and employment, as well as better understand their knowledge of the support services that currently exist in Orkney.
 
The survey was developed in partnership by Job Centre Plus, Skills Development Scotland, Developing the Young Workforce Orkney, the OIC’s Community Learning and Development and the Youth Forum.  It is open to all young people aged between 16-24 years, whether they are still in education, an apprenticeship, working or currently unemployed.
 
The Youth Employment Survey is now live and can be accessed here and will be open until Friday 23 October 2020.

Copies in word can be requested by emailing orkneydyw@uhi.ac.uk

We are all aware of the economic impact of coronavirus and that some businesses have either made or are having to consider making redundancies. This is not an easy process for the employer or the employee, but help is at hand to provide support.

The local PACE partnership offers a free, confidential redundancy support service for businesses of any size.  The service is free and employers can use it to help them and their staff navigate redundancy.

It is managed by Skills Development Scotland, and Claire Sim from the Kirkwall team has made the below video explaining more about PACE and the support they can offer Orkney businesses.  You can also read more here.

If you would like to learn more about PACE, contact Claire on claire.sim@sds.co.uk or call (01856) 602 815.

The Cabinet Secretary for the Economy, Fiona Hyslop MSP, has announced further details on how the Youth Guarantee will give young people the chance to succeed despite the economic impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19).

Today's (Wednesday 2 September) announcement has confirmed additional investment for Developing the Young Workforce Regional Groups to support the delivery of the Youth Guarantee including strengthening our offer in the senior phase and ensuring those furthest from the labour market can access the appropriate support.

This week’s Sector Spotlight is focusing on the Construction Industry.  Today, we hear from Jacqueline Argo, who is the Apprenticeships Officer for the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

Jacqueline started her career as an Office Junior before becoming an Accounts Assistant.  She then became Office Manager for a construction company, and moved into her current role 12 years ago.

This week’s Sector Spotlight is on the Construction Industry.  Today we hear from Andrew Harvey, who is an Apprentice Wood Machinist with R Clouston Ltd.

​Andrew began his apprenticeship straight from school and is currently in his second year.

This week’s Sector Spotlight is focusing on the Construction Industry.  Today, we hear from Scott Barnett who is a Site Manager at Casey Construction Ltd.
 
Scott has worked at Casey Construction since 2004, prior to that he was the Assistant Manager at Jewson’s having started his career there as an Estimator.

​In our last Sector Spotlight focusing on careers in Financial Services we hear from Ryan Allan, who is an Associate Director with Scholes Chartered Accountants.
 
Ryan has always had an aptitude for numbers and started studying accountancy with finance at University.  However, when a trainee position came up at Scholes at the end of his second year, he decided to apply and left University to take on the role.  He has since completed his professional qualifications alongside working with the company.

Our second Sector Spotlight on the Financial Services features Kevin Hancock, who is the Senior Vice President of Marsh Commercial, an Insurance Brokers based in Kirkwall.
 
After school, Kevin went to University in Glasgow and after graduating began working for Royal Insurance.  He then returned to Orkney to work for a local insurance broker which was bought over by Clark Thomson Insurance, at which point Kevin was made Branch Manager.  He was promoted to his current role and given responsibility for all the offices in the Highlands and Islands.  Marsh Commercial bought Clark Thomson Insurance in May 2018.

​In our second week of Sector Spotlight features, we are focusing on careers in Financial Services.  Today we hear from Lois Canning, who is a Personal Banker with the Royal Bank of Scotland.  As part of her role, Lois travels to the outer isles to provide banking services to those communities and is known as the 'Flying Banker'.

​Lois has worked in financial services since she left school, working in a variety of roles and undertaking on-the-job training to develop her skills and progress in her career.

​The 'No Wrong Path' campaign was started by Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) Glasgow in 2017.  The campaign runs on the day the Scottish exam results are released and aims to highlight that many people in interesting jobs didn't necessarily take a straight, obvious or traditional path to get there.

In the last of this week’s Sector Spotlight on the Energy Industry we hear from Stewart Esslemont, who is a Project Engineer with National Oilwell Varco (NOV) Wellstream Processing on Flotta.
 
After leaving school, Stewart originally started on the Clyde Marine Apprenticeship scheme to become a Mechanical Engineer.  He ultimately decided that was not the career choice for him, so returned to Orkney where he undertook various roles before becoming a Project Technician for Opus Plus Ltd (now NOV Wellstream Processing) eight years ago.  He was promoted into his current role four years ago.

In our next Sector Spotlight on the Energy Industry we hear from Craig Smith, who is a Senior Health and Safety and Environmental Advisor with Repsol Sinopec Resources UK.
 
Following university, Craig returned to Orkney to start his working life with an environmental consultancy in Stromness before moving to SEPA where he worked for over 15 years.  Alongside his role with SEPA he also volunteered as a retained firefighter with Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.  Craig then took up a post as an environmental consultant on a cruise liner which sailed in Australia, New Zealand and Alaska.  He moved into his current role a year ago and is based on Flotta.

Continuing our Sector Spotlight on the Energy Industry, today we hear from Erica Mathers, who is the Marketing Officer for EMEC (European Marine Energy Centre).
 
After leaving school, Erica undertook a degree in Rural Business Management with Agriculture at SRUC in Aberdeen.  Following that, she worked as an Agricultural Consultant in Inverurie, Aberdeenshire before returning to Orkney three years ago to undertake her current role.

​This week’s Sector Spotlight is focusing on the Energy Industry.  Today, we hear from Siobhan Peace, who is a Study Director with National Oilwell Varco Wellstream Processing (NOV) on Flotta.
 
After starting a degree in Architecture, Siobhan realised that wasn’t the correct career path for her so switched to a degree in Zoology.  She started with NOV as a Laboratory Technician and worked her way up to her current role as Study Director.

Our Sector Spotlight campaign returns for the summer and we begin by focusing on the Energy Industry.  Today, we hear from John Corsie, who is a Production Technician with Repsol Sinopec Resources UK.
 
After leaving school, John undertook and completed a Modern Apprenticeship in Refrigeration, Air Conditions and Heat Pump systems with local business Steven R Paterson.  He then felt ready for a career change and was successful in applying for the OPITO Modern Apprenticeship Scheme, securing one of four spaces available on Flotta.  Following the completion of his apprenticeship, he was offered a full-time position with Respol Sinopec Resources UK on Flotta.