Funding opportunities
Current Opportunities
The Mayor's ESF Co-Financing Programme: ESF Academies is now CLOSED.
The ESF Academies Programme will complement the work of the Mayor's Academies Hubs by supporting unemployed and economically inactive Londoners to access wraparound, sectorial focused employability guidance and support to help them get jobs in the Digital, Creative, Green, Hospitality, and Health and Social Care sectors.
Currently £6.7m funding is available to support 12 sectorial Projects in London, supporting London's priority sectors.
This opportunity has now closed.
- The deadline for Applications was 12pm on Friday 18 March 2022.
- The deadline to submit questions was 4pm on Tuesday 08 March 2022.
The ESF Academies Programme will complement the work of the Mayor's Academies Hubs by supporting unemployed and economically inactive Londoners to access wraparound, sectorial focused employability guidance and support to help them get jobs in the Digital, Creative, Green, Hospitality, and Health and Social Care sectors.
This project will complement the work of the London Careers Hubs and the GLA's other ESF-funded Careers Cluster projects. It will support FE colleges to offer more employer encounters for students with SEND, and for businesses to develop more inclusive workplaces.
This project will complement the work of the London Careers Hubs and the GLA's other ESF-funded Careers Cluster projects. It will support FE colleges to offer more employer encounters for students with SEND, and for businesses to develop more inclusive workplaces.
This project will help people living and working in Hounslow to gain skills, find jobs and improve employment prospects in the creative industries, particularly within business in the Hounslow Creative Enterprise Zone (CEZ).
London Careers Hubs
This programme will establish four Careers Hubs in London, one in each of London’s sub-regional partnership areas. The GLA will award Grant Agreements to organisations to deliver both the Careers Hubs and the Employability Activity in a sub-region.
The overall aim of this project is to help Londoners move into higher-level skilled training, qualifications and occupations, whilst strengthening their labour market competitiveness.
Lewisham CEZ
This project focus on helping people living in Lewisham gain skills and experience to find, and sustain jobs, in the creative sector within the Lewisham Creative Enterprise Zone (CEZ).
Croydon CEZ
This project focuses on helping people living in Croydon to gain skills, and find jobs in the creative industries, particularly within businesses in the Croydon Creative Enterprise Zone (CEZ).
Brixton (Lambeth) CEZ
This project focuses on people living and working in Lambeth to gain skills, find jobs and improve employment prospects in the creative industries, particularly within businesses in the Brixton Creative Enterprise Zone (CEZ).
Hounslow CEZ
This project focuses on helping people living and working in Hounslow to gain skills, find jobs and improve employment prospects in the creative industries, particularly within businesses in the Hounslow Creative Enterprise Zone (CEZ).
CEZ Q&As
Gangs Prevention
This Project focuses on supporting vulnerable young people in London who are at risk of being exploited by gang activity. It will focus on improving engagement with education and increasing employability.
Targeted NEET
This project will support young Londoners aged 16 to 24 who are Not in Employment, Education or Training (NEET) providing individually tailored support for achieving sustained education, training or employment results in South and West London.
STEM Sector Skills
The overall aim of this project is to enable NEET young people and unemployed, and economically inactive adults to gain industry relevant skills and progress into sustainable EET in the STEM sector.
SEND
The aim of this project is to help young Londoners who have Special Educational Needs or a Disability and who are NEET.
Careers Clusters
This programme will build upon the experience and success of the previous 12 Careers Clusters in London which were funded until March 2019. This model seeks to foster collaboration across schools, colleges and employers that maximise local and London wide opportunities.
Creative Sector Skills
London's creative industries constitute a significant element of the capital's economy and make a huge contribution to London's reputation as an open, creative and diverse city. This Project will enable young people who are NEET and unemployed and economically inactive
Early Years Sector Skills
The overall aim of this project is to enable NEET young people and economically inactive and unemployed adults to gain industry relevant qualifications and experience to progress into EET destinations.
General Questions and Answers
Parental Employment
These project focus on two areas; helping parents out of work to find (and sustain) jobs, and, helping parents on low pay to progress in work.
Homelessness
The aim of the project is to enable unemployed adults who are homeless to overcome barriers to employment and enter and sustain training, education or employment.
Ex Offenders
The aim of the project is to support ex-offenders with multiple and complex barriers that prevent them from entering and sustaining education, training and employment to become work ready and able to access employment opportunities.
General Questions and Answers
Head2Work
This £794,000 project will support young Londoners aged 18 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) and will help their transition into sustained employment, education or training.
Creative Enterprise Zones: Tottenham
The Creative Enterprise Zones: Tottenham Enterprise and Skills project will support employees of businesses in the Tottenham Creative Enterprise Zone to up-skill and progress in work. It will also help creative businesses and education organisations to collaborate on creative training programmes and improve pathways into the industry
Start Up, Step Up London
The LEAP Growth Hub Start Up, Step Up London programme seeks to develop an entrepreneurial mindset, supporting people into business creation or employment. The programme will also help SMEs, start-ups and micros to grow their businesses and will support under-represented groups, particularly women, into leadership and management roles.
Higher Level Digital Skills
The Higher Level Digital Skills programme aims to improve the labour market relevance of higher level digital skills training in London. The project will fund a suite of collaborative activities between startups, Small and Medium Sized Enterprises (SMEs), micro-enterprises (micros) and higher level digital skills providers.
Early Years Leaders
Early Years Leaders was put out for tender in May 2018. Following an unsuccessful procurement, and marketplace consultation, the decision was made to withdraw the ESF match funding. Read information on the resulting Early Years Leaders programme.
Haringey Higher Level Skills
The Haringey Higher Level Skills project will put Haringey residents on the pathway to gaining full qualifications, and in doing so place them in a better position to secure the higher level jobs that are a significant and increasing feature of the London labour market. The project has a specific focus on Haringey residents living in the most deprived parts of the borough.
2Work
2Work will support 18-24 year olds. This project will support young people to access a wide variety of volunteering opportunities and experiences from the world of work, with a view to raising their aspirations and levels of work experience, and helping them gain the skills to move into, and sustain education, employment or training.
Getting Back on Track
Getting Back on Track will support young people who have recently dropped out from their level 2/3 studies at school or college. The preferred supplier will work in partnership with sixth-form and FE educational establishments to identify, engage with, and provide immediate support to their early leavers so they successfully enter and sustain employment or return to education.
Care Leavers into Work
Care Leavers into Work will support 16-24 year old care leavers into sustained employment. The preferred supplier will support care leavers to access a wide variety of experiences from the world of work, with a view to raising their aspirations and levels of work experience, and helping them gain the skills to move into, and sustain work.
Forces for London
Forces For London will support Veterans and Early Service Leavers (ESL’s) in London from across the services to access a wide variety of volunteering opportunities and employer experiences.
These will expand participants' views of their potential educational and work opportunities, enable them to access volunteering opportunities and work experience, and help them gain the skills to move into, and sustain education, employment or training.
Digital Skills Training
Digital Skills Training aims to equip unemployed and ‘at risk’ young Londoners for employment in London’s increasingly digital economy.
This funding will support new digital training opportunities that help young people aged 16-24 years old move into sustained employment, education or training and will help plug a growing talent gap in digital, technology and creative entry-level occupations with diverse, ‘home-grown’ talent.
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