West Midlands Mayor backs initiative to boost job prospects of hundreds of people in Solihull and Birmingham

Mayor Richard Parker has visited the Colebridge Trust in Solihull to see first hand how it's transforming lives and tackling unemployment by helping hundreds of people find jobs.

Over the past year, the Trust has helped 500 people living in North Solihull and East Birmingham gain the confidence and skills they need to secure jobs and training opportunities.

The Trust has also directly employed over 45 people from the local area, some who have faced challenges in the job market, including those with learning disabilities, lone parents, people over 50, and with long-term health conditions.

Some of these jobs are at a light assembly and packing social enterprise that the Trust runs in Chelmsley Wood.

Since its launch in 2012, Colebridge Enterprises has provided over 500 paid jobs and work experience placements, through major partnerships with local companies, including global electrical components manufacturer Wago in Rugby, Warwickshire.

Colebridge Trust has also provided youth mentoring, maths and digital training with funding from the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).

The Mayor said: “Colebridge Trust is changing lives - helping local people learn, earn and reach their full potential, no matter what.

“Social enterprises, small charities, and community-led groups in all corners of the West Midlands are working tirelessly to make a difference for everyone, especially the most vulnerable, in our region.

“That's why I am helping them access funding and support to continue driving real change where it matters most. My mission is simple: to open doors so everyone has the chance of a brighter future.”

Chet Parmar, CEO at Colebridge Trust, said: “It was a pleasure to welcome the Mayor and an excellent opportunity for him to see Colebridge Enterprises – he did a great job of asking our diverse team about their individual and shared experiences.

“The WMCA is a key partner for community anchor organisations such as us, who work from within communities to tackle inequalities. Over the years we have secured many job, training, and inclusion outcomes. Our latest collaboration is Digital Divide to help local residents to connect and make better use of technology. We want our local people to thrive and succeed."

Colebridge Trust is one of almost 200 social economy organisations that are getting direct funding and business growth support from the WMCA as part of the Mayor's manifesto commitment to help small local charities, social entrepreneurs and voluntary groups.

That support is already helping to secure new funding for communities right across the region, creating jobs, and supporting impactful local projects such as a bike hire scheme to promote greener transport and more support for entrepreneurs.

The social economy is the collective term for social enterprises, co-operatives, community-owned and employee-owned businesses whose goal is to improve the lives of local people and create new jobs.

In the West Midlands, it employs more than 100,000 people across more than 9,000 organisations with a combined turnover of around £14 billion.

Find out more about the support available to help grow the social economy on the WMCA website.