APPLY FOR THE PROGRAMME:
If you are from an organisation supporting young people you can use the form below or contact socialswitch@catch-22.org.uk
Register your interest by completing the ‘REFER YOURSELF’ form below, and one of our mentors will be in touch!
Who is the Digital Skills & Employability Programme for?
All young Londoners, no matter what their background, should have access to opportunities in the digital workforce. The Social Switch Project is unlocking the skills of a generation through a digital skills employability and work experience programme.
The Digital Skills & Employability Programme is free for 16-30 year olds living in London.
What will the Digital Skills & Employability Programme cover?
Through our Digital Skills & Employability programme, we are unlocking the digital skills of a generation and empowering individuals with the knowledge needed to succeed in today’s digital workforce.
We recognise that every young person has different needs, so we offer a wide range of support that can be tailored for each individual young person. Young people can select what they require from our extensive menu of support which includes:
1-1 tailored career coaching
support with transport costs
recording studio time
in-work support
paid work experience opportunities
further training/short courses
IT and internet support
acquiring photo ID
What have we achieved?
The Digital Skills & Employability Programme has trained over 109 young people as social media managers and provided intensive career support post-programme.
We asked participants what was the most beneficial thing that they learned during the Digital Skills & Employability Training:
“Interview skills and CV skills” (employability skills)
“The CV writing skills are going to be something that helps me for a long time to come. It was very useful”
“I feel like I can cooperate better since joining this, usually I would be really independent, but this put me into a group session. This helped me be more cooperative when in a team, rather than just going alone”
Hear from our participants:
Anthony completed the Digital Skills & Employability Programme and secured a marketing apprenticeship at Google:
“Digital platforms give young people opportunities regardless of any situation."
“I want to use this as an opportunity to inspire other young people, especially from where I’m from, to see that you can be successful regardless of your circumstances. Taking on this role is not just about me furthering my career, it’s about me growing a following and platform to inspire young people.”
Dwight completed the Digital Skills & Employability Programme and is now working as a Junior Videographer and designer:
“My Instagram page is going strong, I've managed to grow it to over 1000 followers! When I first started the social switch, I had around 200ish. The social switch project helped me out so much just from the cohort alone, I learned a lot of valuable skills. I only started using Canva after the workshop and since then, I've created my basketball page logo, and templates for IG stories and I use it every day at work. Again, I wouldn't be able to do it without the lens you provided so I'm extremely grateful.”
Ali completed the Digital Skills & Employability Programme and secured an apprenticeship:
“I finally got an apprenticeship and I’m working on becoming a data engineer. Just a massive thanks to you and the team for helping me on my journey.”
Are you an employer, ready to support young Londoners?
We are looking for organisations to offer our young trainees virtual placements to gain valuable experience of the industry. We already have 40 graduates of the programme who are ready and able to help you create original content to engage with your stakeholders.
By being a part of this project, you will be giving young people in London the confidence to launch their career and become future digital leaders.
If you can help us or would like to know more, please contact socialswitch@catch-22.org.uk