Press release, November 2020: Collaborative internship programme creates a more inclusive future of work
Earlier on this year, in the midst of the pandemic, Collaborative Future launched a transformational work placement programme bringing unemployed and underemployed young people, small businesses and freelancers together to work and learn. The programme had the dual purpose of providing meaningful, fairly paid and flexible work opportunities to young people, and offering small and micro businesses flexible access to diverse talent in order to grow sustainably.
Building on the success of their 2020 programme, the team are now relaunching an even bigger and better version of it for 2021 - and applications to be a part of it are open now! Tess Cooper, the Founder of Collaborative Future says: "We need to completely reimagine the world of work to really empower people to thrive, and the small businesses and young people we work with are the ones rewriting the rules. Through our programme we are creating new ways of working that will lead to a more resilient and inclusive economy."
Starting in January, and running entirely remotely for 6 months, the Collaborative Future team will once again create a powerful, resilient and creative community, this time by bringing together 10 diverse young people with 20 business owners, located all around the UK.
Amy Woodgate, Director of Woodgate Consulting, who has worked with five interns through the scheme so far and hired one of them full-time, says "The really good thing about being part of the Collaborative Future rather than going through a standard recruitment route, or through the people that you know, is that you get the diversity of applicants you wouldn't otherwise."
Unlike traditional employability schemes, Collaborative Future centres around creating flexibility and amplifying people's unique individuality. Their approach creates a mutually beneficial relationship for businesses and interns alike. By providing such collective learning opportunities, it enables individuals to grow their mindset and create lasting connections.
"Collaborative Future work so hard to create an inclusive, flexible and collaborative environment and these benefits can be felt by the interns and businesses involved. The team helped me to gain my confidence back and understand my worth as an individual. They made - what seemed like - the impossibility of full-time employment possible and for that, I will be forever thankful." says Kelly, 22, who secured full-time work through completing paid projects as part of the programme.
In spite of their success and impact, Collaborative Future were unable able to access the Government Kickstart Scheme to support them in this growth due to their small size and structure. However, their small business community continues to invest in the work they do, enabling them to hire 10 more interns, and a community advocate to expand their delivery team. "Working with Collaborative Future to hire our product manager was the best business decision we've ever made", said James Gadsby Peet, Director of Digital & Strategy of William Joseph Design.
The 2021 programme is now open for applications from other businesses to join up. Deadline for applications is 6th December 2020. Head to collaborativefuture.co.uk/businesses to discover more, or get in touch by emailing hello@collaborativefuture.co.uk.
Birmingham based intern Prisca and Nottingham based business owners, Organised Fun, working together on a remote and flexible through the Collaborative Future programme.