About the NOMS Co-financing Organisation

Projects aimed at improving employability are seen as key to changing offender's lives and reducing reoffending. Since January 2010, the NOMS European Social Fund (ESF) Co-financing programme has been working with participants who would benefit from additional employment and skills provision.

The NOMS ESF Programme aims to complement existing provision, particulary the Offender Learning and Skills Service (OLASS) in prisons as well as other existing employment and skills services.

Who are NOMS Co-financing Participants?

The NOMS Co-financing Organisation works to improve the employability of Hard to Help individuals within the larger offender target group, with such individuals being currently unable to access mainstream provision, and are therefore unable to return to the labour market.

Our participants are generally:

Unskilled
Unqualified
De-motivated
Drug and/or alcohol issues
Behavioural issues
Debt problems
Accommodation problems

Specific Hard to Help groups are targeted within certain geographic areas as follows:

North East - Offenders coming to the end of serving a life sentence
North West (inc. Merseyside) - Women with low-level mental health needs
Yorkshire & Humberside - Islamist extremists and sex offenders.
South Yorkshire - Sex offenders
East Midlands - Dual Diagnosis offenders and female sex workers
West Midlands - Travellers and show people
East of England - Female sex workers
South East - Offenders with dependent families (particulary those aged 18-24)
London - Veterans, young people involved in gang activity, prisoners released following sentences served abroad
South - West (inc. Cornwall) - Young offenders transitioning into the adult justice system

Two Phases to the Programme:

Phase 1

During the first phase of the programme 2010-11, NOMS received £50million from the European Social Fund. Regionally focussed projects were commissioned with a range of providers and sub contractors appointed to help offenders and ex-offenders access employment services assisting them to gain employment. The programme exceeded it targets consistently across all areas.

Phase 2

A second phase of the programme with a value of £89million is now being delivered. This phase of the programme will see an increased focus on harder to reach groups of offenders including sex workers, ex service personnel and young offenders in transition. This phase of the programme commenced in January 2011 and will run to December 2014.

About Us

Please select a link below:

Or select a tab at the top of this page to move to another section.