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Essex Anchor Network Working Groups

 

A number of Working Groups have been established under the Essex Anchor Network (EAN) to allow partners to work collaboratively to drive forward action in areas of priority which have been proposed by the Network.  Anchors can nominate themselves forward to support Groups which are of interest to their organisation.  The Working Groups are:

 

Employability Working Group

The Employability Working Group was formed in September 2021 and invites Anchors from across the Greater Essex footprint to come together for the shared purpose of upskilling residents and supporting them into employment within the Public Sector.

There are currently two key workstreams within this Group that partners are collectively developing:

  • A Campaign to showcase the Public Sector and the many benefits that working for this Sector provides. We will look to breakdown some of the stereotypes of the Public Sector and promote the significant breadth of roles and career opportunities available. This campaign will work alongside Anchor’s own recruitment initiatives and support them to fill training and job vacancies.
  • The Public Sector Employability Programme will be a short course providing advice, guidance and support to residents considering a career in the Public Sector. The Programme will help residents to identify their own transferable skills, gain confidence and resilience when searching, applying, and interviewing for jobs, and offer the opportunity to hear first-hand from Public Sector employees about their own experiences of working for Anchors. Our vision is for the Programme to help residents to either gain employment (therefore filling Public Sector vacancies) or move closer to the employment market via referrals into further education or training.

 

Inclusive Employment Working Group

The Inclusive Employment Working Group was formed in September 2021, and aims to increase opportunities for those furthest from employment to get into work. The group also works to develop and improve recruitment practice, allowing Anchor organisations to become leaders as inclusive employers. To this end, the working group is currently looking at two projects:

  • A Reverse Jobs Fair – Increasing inclusive employment across the county through events that highlight the talent within these groups.  During Reverse Job Fairs employers circulate the job seeker’s stands, giving those individuals the opportunity to demonstrate their skills and abilities in a supported environment.
  • Inclusive Employment Job Coaches – Providing Employment Practitioner Apprenticeships to organisations so that they may support their own employees to address and overcome obstacles, therefore helping these individuals to secure and maintain employment.

 

Social Value Learning Community

A collaborative learning space, the Social Value Learning Community aims to support Anchor Institutions in Greater Essex to advance their own Social Value journeys and maximise the network’s Social Value creation. The community was formed in November 2021 with the proposal of a wide learning agenda that covers the mixed nuances of Social Value of each of the sectors represented at Essex Anchor Network.

The 2022 plan will focus on increasing the Social Value knowledge among the Anchor ecosystem, support members to embed Social Value through Procurement and establish baseline for members and the network through spend analysis. The community’s common goal is to make the most of Essex’s Anchor power through Procurement and Commissioning of goods and services.

 

Climate Action Working Group

In January 2022 the Climate Action Working Group formed a robust coalition between EAN members, focusing on Climate and Green Growth in Greater Essex, as well as an operational framework to drive collaborative action aligned with and in response to the recommendations of the Essex Climate Action Commission (ECAC).

The key aim of the Group is to enable Greater Essex to respond in unison and in a comprehensive manner to the challenge of achieving net zero by 2050. In doing so it will promote Green Growth to unlock new opportunities for businesses and residents of Greater Essex, and lead to tangible outcomes in the form of more sustainable investment, homes and jobs. It will focus on making Greater Essex more resilient to climate risk, with particular emphasis on SMEs developing the necessary skills for transitioning to a low-carbon and renewable energy economy. It will foster multi-disciplinary, cross-sector collaboration and use EAN’s powers as collaborators, leaders and convenors to enable the sharing of ideas and practices between business, academia, the public and Civil Society, and the various communities across Greater Essex.

The group will shortly be deciding on a shortlist of projects to take forward for a Year of Climate Action.