JobStart eligibility section
Are you an existing JobStart employer?
Yes/No
Are you requesting additional JobStart opportunities?
Yes/No
Are you an employer in Northern Ireland?
Please note if you are not an employer in Northern Ireland you cannot apply for funding from the JobStart Scheme.
Which best describes your business?
Please choose the sector which best describes your business - Private, Public or Third Sector
- Private sector (owned and controlled by private individuals with the aim of making a profit)
- Public sector (owned and controlled by the government with the aim of providing a service to the public)
- Third sector (e.g. charities, voluntary organisations and social enterprises)
How many JobStart Scheme job opportunities can you offer?
Please insert the number of opportunities you are proposing to create in this application.
Employers should note that only opportunities for 50-64 year olds are currently being considered.
Please consider the resources you have and ensure you have sufficient resource to provide mentoring and support to the participant.
Do your job opportunities meet the JobStart Scheme criteria?
Yes/No
The JobStart Scheme job opportunities must:
- be for 6 months
- provide at least 25 hours work per week
- pay at least the National Living Wage through PAYE
- pay National Insurance and Pension Contributions as required
- provide support for the participant whilst they are employed as part of the JobStart Scheme
Are your job opportunities just for the JobStart Scheme?
Yes/No
Your JobStart Scheme job opportunity:
- must not be for a vacancy that already exists or is planned
- must not cause existing employees, apprentices or contractors to lose work or reduce their working hours
- is being created specifically for this Scheme
- must be a quality job opportunity as approved by the Department
- will be funded for 25 hours per week at National Living Wage rate (employers can choose to pay a higher wage and offer additional hours - this additional cost must be met by the employer)
Can you provide a high level of support to develop both occupational and employability skills to meet JobStart Scheme requirements?
By creating a JobStart Scheme job opportunity you are helping those in or at risk of falling into long term unemployment, including those young people who have been identified as facing additional barriers to employment.
Participants will need your support to develop their occupational and employability skills. Employers are expected to provide both occupational and employability skills training for all participants. Please note: -Employers will also complete a robust Training Plan that will be reviewed and approved by the Department. Throughout the participation period the Department will carry out periodic monitoring reviews to ensure the participant is receiving a quality opportunity and actions set out in the Training Plan have been implemented. It is a condition of the funding that employers are available and fully compliant with departmental monitoring requirements.
Occupational skills
Occupational skills relate specifically to the job role being offered and the job description provided for the post. For example:
- Office administration - using job specific IT programmes
- Retail - till operations and cash handling
- Hospitality sector - basic food hygiene certification
This list is not exhaustive and is only provided as an example. Employers should tailor the skills to match the job role offered.
Employability skills
These are transferable workplace skills, relevant to any job role such as:
- good motivation and initiative
- working effectively as part of a team
- good verbal and written communication
This list is not exhaustive and is only provided as an example. Employers should tailor the skills to match the needs of the participant.
Please note that the Department does not have contracts with any individual training providers. You are free to choose any organisation to provide this employability support on your behalf.
You will be asked to outline these skills and tell us about how you will provide this support at questions 21, 22 and 23.
Employer details section
Name of Company/Charity/Employer
Please enter the exact name of your business.
If you are a limited company this needs to be the exact name registered with Companies House. Otherwise insert the full name of your business.
Organisation address
Please provide your full business address including postcode.
Companies House Registration Number or Charity Commission Number where applicable
Your Company Registration Number (CRN) is a unique 6 digit number, or
Your charity number is given to you by the Charity Commission for NI when you register. It is a unique combination of 6 numbers.
If you do not have a Company Registration Number, are a Public Sector organisation or an exempt charity you should enter ‘0’.
Your name
Insert the name of the person completing the application.
Primary contact details
Insert the name of the person who will deal with queries all queries from the Department in relation to the JobStart Scheme.
You will need to confirm this contact point is on the company payroll and what position they hold within the company.
It is recommended that an alternative point of contact be identified at this time to handle enquiries in the absence of the Primary Contact
Telephone number
Please provide a full telephone/mobile number for any identified points of contact.
Email address
Please provide a valid email address for any identified points of contact.
Please ensure email addresses are typed correctly – we will send documents to you using these email addresses
How many employees are in your company/organisation at date of application?
Please provide both the total number of employees in your organisation as well as the number based in Northern Ireland.
We need to know this to help us decide whether you are likely to be able to support the number of JobStart opportunities you wish to provide.
Include:
- all workers paid directly from this business's payroll(s)
- those temporarily absent but still being paid, for example on maternity leave
Exclude:
- working owners who are not paid via PAYE
- voluntary workers
- former employees only receiving a pension
- self-employed workers
- agency workers paid directly from the agency payroll
- subcontractors
Which of the following best describes your business area?
Please choose the area most appropriate to your business.
Job opportunity details
What information do you have to show your job opportunities are specifically for the JobStart Scheme?
Provide information to show that the job opportunities from your organisation are being created specifically for the JobStart Scheme.
Your JobStart Scheme job opportunity:
- is being created specifically for this Scheme
- must be a quality job opportunity as approved by the Department
- will be funded for 25 hours per week at National Living Wage rate (employers can choose to pay a higher wage and offer additional hours - this additional cost must be met by the employer)
Your JobStart Scheme job opportunity must not:
- be for a vacancy that already exists or is planned
- cause existing employees, apprentices or contractors to lose work or reduce their working hours
- be used to fulfil Buy Social clause requirements in government procurement contracts
We need to know about changes to your workforce over the last 6 months. Tell us:
What changes have there been to your workforce in the last 6 months and why? How many people have been affected by these changes?
For example what redundancies have there been? What roles were made redundant? Have there been any changes to contracted hours or roles of existing staff?
What were the average salaries of those affected?
Please also include the average salary of any role affected by changes to the workforce.
Would you be able to create these job opportunities without JobStart Scheme funding?
This question is to ensure that the opportunities you are offering are being created as additional roles and not to fill current vacancies.
What recruitment have you completed, started or paused in the last 6 months?
How similar were these vacancies to the roles you are creating for the JobStart Scheme?
If the job opportunities will be similar to existing or planned roles, or the roles previously done by those made redundant or with fewer working hours, why are you using JobStart Scheme funding to create similar roles?
Please give details of any similar roles and an explanation for each role you intend to use JobStart funding for.
Have you engaged with any relevant trade unions about participation in the JobStart scheme?
Please tell us if a collective agreement is in place and any advice the unions have given.
Are you receiving any funding from Labour Marker Partnerships?
Yes/No
If yes, please tell us what this funding was for.
What roles are you planning to create for the JobStart Scheme?
Please provide a description for all job roles you are planning to create.
Please include:
- job title(s)
- description(s) of the duties involved for each role
Providing Occupational Skills
Please list a minimum of 5 occupational skills the participant will develop during the job opportunity you are providing.
If you are offering different roles, please list a minimum of 5 occupational skills specific to each role being offered.
Throughout the participation period the Department will carry out periodic monitoring reviews to ensure the participant is receiving a quality opportunity and actions set out in the Training Plan have been implemented. It is a condition of the funding that employers are available and fully compliant with Departmental monitoring requirements.
Occupational skills relate specifically to the job role being offered and the job description provided for the post.
- Office administration - using job specific IT programmes
- Retail - till operations and cash handling
- Hospitality sector - basic food hygiene certification
This list is not exhaustive and is only provided as an example. Employers should tailor the skills to match the job role offered.
Support to Develop Employability Skills
Can you confirm you will offer support to develop employability skills?
It is expected that support will be given to help the participant develop employability skills and build experience.
You are asked to confirm that this support will be provided.
A tailored Training Plan will be developed for each participant by the employer where details on the employability support will be gathered. At this point you may wish to consider:
- what employability skills you intend to develop during the participant’s job opportunity. These are transferable workplace skills, relevant to any job role.
- whether support will be supplied internally or externally. For example, you may already have a pre-existing relationship with training providers. Please note it is not mandatory but may be beneficial to the participant to use an external training provider.
- how you intend to monitor the progress of the participant in developing their employability skills and what steps may be possible to adapt this support to the participant’s needs over time
How can the participant provide feedback during their opportunity and afterwards?
Please note that this should be feedback from the participant to you. Can this feedback be used to modify the support being offered?
Additional information
Where will your JobStart Scheme job opportunities be based?
More than one council area can be selected - please select all that apply.
Do you wish to offer any unfilled JobStart Opportunities to the 50-64 age group?
JobStart is extending the current scheme to those aged 50.
Existing employers on the JobStart Scheme can choose to offer unfilled opportunities to those aged 50-64 as well as 16-24 and should indicate here if they wish to do so (this will only occur with your consent.)
Employers with no unfilled vacancies or new employers applying to the scheme should select these options.
How did you hear about the JobStart Scheme?
More than one option can be selected – please select all that apply.
Did you apply to the JobStart Scheme for 16-24 year olds?
Yes/No
Please note this includes both the first JobStart Scheme which ran from 02 April 2021 to 31 March 2023 and the current scheme which launched 14 June 2023.
Are you satisfied with the JobStart application process?
Yes/No
We value your feedback and welcome your suggestions on what we could do to improve the process.
Submitting your application
Please select the checkbox below to confirm that your application meets the criteria detailed.
By adding your signature and checking the boxes, you are confirming that you have read and understood the terms and conditions of the JobStart Scheme and that you will provide any further information to process your application in a timely manner.
Almost done...
Please press 'Continue' and ‘Submit Response’ on the next page in order for your application to be received by the JobStart Team.
If you submit your email address, you will receive a PDF version of your application.
We recommend that you request a copy of your application. If we request clarification or further information, it may prove useful to see what information has been supplied previously.