CHARITY founder Fiona Simpson has joined Swindon-based social enterprise The Platform Project to help more young people find work or take their next steps in life.

Thanks to the project receiving new funding grants, Fiona is now the latest member of the team, a part-time youth development manager.

She has worked with young people in various roles, including co-founding a charitable foundation in 2016.

Her new role will support the internship programme, which is where young people aged 16 to 21 attend the project's training workplace to do developmental work-experience.

The interns rotate around different roles and projects, including a youth magazine, a digital media marketing agency, and even a self-employment project.

They develop a skills including using Teams, pitching and presenting, social media management, website design, videography, client liaisons, time and project management all while working alongside industry professionals from partner organisations.

The practical experiences help build CVs and employability skills, while providing the opportunity to try out different career roles before being paired up with a mentor to plan their next steps on the career ladder.

This could include moving into work or even setting up their own business.

Fiona said: “I feel hugely fortunate to have been offered a role working with Sadie Sharp at The Platform Project as it allows me the opportunity to share my passion for making a difference to the lives of young people and I am inspired by what the project has achieved so far.

“Almost 90 per cent of the students on the internship programme go straight into employment or further education because the range of experiences on offer are focused on getting them work ready.

“However if they do not get employment straight away, they will then be further supported by a mentor to guide them into an employment placement, and they will all have the ability to earn their own self-employed income as well.

"Our programme aims to produce professionals who are as pandemic-proof as possible.”

The Dorcan-based social enterprise is in its fourth year and has already quadrupled the amount of funding received this year to help support the increasing number of young people unable to transition into work as a result of the pandemic.

Founder and managing director Sadie Sharp said: “We have been growing incredibly quickly since we launched and we have only been able to do so because we have had the right people working with us.

"The scale of the issues for young people around employability and creating opportunities has never been greater after Covid19 and we are keen, with Fiona’s appointment, to take our youth enterprise projects to more schools to help tackle the challenges presented by the pandemic.”

To find out more about internships or to become an employer partner, visit: www.PlatformProject.co.uk