About Retrain
Why Retrain?
Retrain Scotland is an employability project which exists to provide meaningful training and work opportunities to those who find themselves far from mainstream options.
As a community interest company, our ultimate aims are to benefit the communities in which we work.
We are not profit driven. Retrain’s activities provide benefit to people who live in areas of Scotland which have been officially recognised as deprived. In particular, the primary beneficiaries are often individuals who have been unemployed for a long period of time; recovered from alcohol or substance misuse; served prison sentences; had low educational attainment; disabilities; chronic physical or mental health problems; learning difficulties, and/or caring responsibilities and need to work flexibly.
Any profits we make are reinvested into the organisation or donated to other organisations with whom we partner to achieve the same social impact objectives
Many people in our local communities have something to offer in the workplace, but struggle to gain access to sustainable jobs due to systemic barriers related to their personal experience or societal factors which have acted as a hindrance.
Retrain seeks to inspire people to rediscover their own abilities and gifts, rethink their approach to work and ultimate support people into long-term, sustainable employment, whatever form that may take. We firmly believe that working is a crucial element in providing meaning and purpose in people’s lives. It’s the way we were made to be…
Our Christian faith underpins what we do and why we do it.
The Bible teaches that we ought to work so that we can contribute to community life. We believe that people from the schemes have much to offer in the workplace and that they can find stability and purpose as they work in a nurturing environment which benefit them and the local community.
What Drives Us?
Unemployment rates in Scotland are said to be at a record low of 3%, and yet the schemes of Scotland tell a different story where unemployment rates climb to between 18 and 25%. 11.5% of households in Edinburgh are workless households.
In other councils this figure rises to 27.1% as in North Lanarkshire1. 9.7% of 16-24 years olds were unemployed in December 2022.
Additionally, the Scottish Government has cited mental health as one of the major public health challenges in Scotland. The mental health epidemic has left many people of all ages far from work.
Moreover, the need to reduce waste, both from households and industry in Scotland is becoming a greater priority as we collectively take on the challenge to become a net zero society by 2045.
The well reported drug and alcohol deaths rates in Scotland remind us that far too many people are trapped in a situations without hope and we believe something can be done to engage people into working and positive influences. There is so much more to life. Jesus said, “I came that they may have life, and have it to the full.”
Our Objectives
To teach practical and soft skills to those who find themselves furthest from mainstream employment opportunities and thereafter support them into further study and/or employment.
Ultimately we want to see poverty reduced, unemployment figures fall and benefit the community by advancing education.
And this is how we do it:
- Employability-centred services :
- Providing soft-skills training for employability.
- Providing hard-skills training or identifying further training opportunities.
- Providing general employability coaching. (e.g., skills gap analysis, personal development plans & help with CVs)
- Providing courses to Christians & churches. (e.g., introduction to business, identifying gifts & talents, coaching sessions on finding direction in finding employment)
- Providing on-going mentorship (e.g. connecting individuals with relevant experience/ entrepreneurs with employability candidates, within a mentorship framework)
- Referring people to our partners (e.g. Forge & Equip)
- Set up businesses which will provide opportunities for people with different skills.