Jobs Growth Wales+ statistics: April 2022 to March 2023

The data in this release covers all four quarters of the 2022-23 financial year (April 2022 to March 2023). The Jobs Growth Wales Plus (JGW+) programme came into operation for new starts on 1 April 2022. All of the data in this report is sourced from the Lifelong Learning Wales Record (LLWR). For information about the programme see background and context below.

• During 2022-23 there were 5,330 active JGW+ programmes. At the end of the year 2,115 programmes were still continuing.
• 3,220 JGW+ programmes ended during the 2022-23 financial year, of which 2,140 were completed. Of the programmes that ended, 58% of leavers had a positive outcome based on their destination within four weeks of leaving the programme.
• Engagement was the largest strand with 3,195 programmes started. This represents 60% of all starts.
• Female learners started 47% of Jobs Growth Wales + programmes in 2022-23 and 57% of female learners had a positive outcome within four weeks of leaving the programme compared to 59% of males.
• During the 2022-23 financial year 6% of Jobs Growth Wales + programme starts were by Black, Asian, and Ethnic Minority learners and 52% of these learners finished with a positive outcome.
• 24% of programme starts were by disabled learners and/or learning difficulty in the 2022-23 financial year. 53% of learners with a disability and/or learning difficulty had a positive outcome.

Figure 1: Total number of programmes started in the current year, by JGW+ strand, April 2022 to March 2023

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Description of Figure 1: Engagement was the largest strand with 3,195 programmes started, 60% of all starts. Employment was the strand with the fewest starts, with 60 starts during 2022-23. Across all strands there were 5,330 programmes started in 2022-23.

Jobs Growth Wales Plus learners by gender, strand and measure on StatsWales

Positive outcomes for learners leaving their JGW+ programme, based on their destination within four weeks, varied between the strands. The rate was 57% for Engagement, 59% for Advancement and 76% for Employment, with an overall rate of 58%.

Figure 2: Destination of JGW+ leavers within four weeks, April 2022 to March 2023

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Description of Figure 2: 35% of JGW+ leavers had a reported destination of ‘Seeking work/unemployed’ , followed by ‘Learning – higher level’ at 31%. See the note on positive outcomes for further information on how these categories contribute to the calculation of positive outcome rates.

Figure 3: Proportion of JGW+ programme starts by gender of learner, April 2022 to March 2023

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Description of Figure 3: Female learners started 47% of programmes in 2022-23.

Jobs Growth Wales Plus learners by gender, strand and measure on StatsWales

In total, 2,785 males started JGW+ programmes, of which 1,680 ended during the year and 1,180 were completed. For females, 2,495 started, of which 1,510 ended and 945 were completed.

57% of female learners had a positive outcome within four weeks of leaving the programme, while 59% of male learners had a positive outcome.

Figure 4: Proportion of JGW+ programme starts by ethnicity of learner, April 2022 to March 2023

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Description of Figure 4: 6% of programme starts were by Black, Asian, and Ethnic Minority learners.

Jobs Growth Wales Plus learners by ethnic group and measure on StatsWales

Of those programmes started by ethnic minority learners the most starts (100) were by those who identified with the 'Other ethnic group' category, followed by those who identified as Black or as of mixed ethnicity. For all ethnic minority groups, there were 310 JGW+ programmes started, of which 185 ended and 120 were completed.

55% of Asian, 61% of Black, 55% of Mixed, and 58% of White learners had a positive outcome within four weeks of leaving the programme; whilst 43% of learners who identified with any other ethnic group had a positive outcome.

The Welsh Government accepts the Social Model of Disability, in which it is recognised that barriers in society act to disable people who have impairments or health conditions or who use British Sign Language.

The Lifelong Learning Wales Record (LLWR), which is the source of data for this release, captures data using the medical definition of disability (“a physical or mental impairment which has a substantial and long-term impact on a person’s ability to carry out normal day to day activities”). In the LLWR, learners are asked if they have a “disability and/or learning difficulty”, this data is used here.

Figure 5: Proportion of JGW+ programme starts by learners with a disability and/or learning difficulty, April 2022 to March 2023

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Description of Figure 5: 24% of programme starts were by learners who self-identified as having a disability and/or learning difficulty.

Jobs Growth Wales Plus learners by primary learning disability and measure on StatsWales

Of those learners with a disability and/or learning difficulty, most programmes started were by those with dyslexia (310), followed by those with autistic spectrum disorders (245) and behavioural, emotional and social difficulties (190). In total there were 1,270 programmes started by learners with a disability and/or learning difficulty, of which 750 ended and 440 were completed.

53% of learners with a disability and/or learning difficulty had a positive outcome within four weeks of leaving the programme, compared to 60% of those without a disability and/or learning difficulty.

Learning activities are typically specific qualifications, courses or learning aims pursued by the learner. JGW+ programmes may consist of one or more learning activities.

The 5,330 JGW+ programmes active in 2022-23 contained 12,495 learning activities. Of these, 3,455 were regulated qualifications listed on the Qualifications in Wales database. The top three qualifications were:

• City & Guilds Entry Level Introductory Award in Employability Skills (Entry 3)
• ETCAL Level 1 Certificate of Introduction to Preparation for Military Service
• City & Guilds Level 1 Award in Employability Skills

Other learning activities consisted of core skills development, job activity searches and personal health and wellbeing development.

89% of JGW+ learning activities were delivered through the medium of English. The remaining 11% were delivered bilingually with the vast majority falling into the category described as “a small amount of Welsh-medium learning e.g. use of Welsh limited to verbal communication or to a minor part of the learning activity. English only assessment.”

The purpose of the Jobs Growth Wales+ Youth Programme is to deliver consolidated and individualised training, development and employability support to 16 to 18 year olds who are assessed as Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) at the time of starting the JGW+ programme.

The JGW+ programme will support delivery of the Welsh Government’s strategic priorities to tackle the consequences and risk factors associated with young people being NEET, which are integral to the Young Persons Guarantee (Working Wales), ‘Stronger, fairer, greener Wales: a  plan for employability and skills’, the Programme for Government and to our wellbeing objectives.

Main delivery objectives of the JGW+ programme are to:

• contribute towards a reduction in the number of 16 to 18 year olds who are NEET.
• achieve positive outcomes for 16 to 18 year olds at risk of becoming NEET
• progress Well-being of Future Generations objectives by delivering employability support for 16 to 18 year olds that provides equal opportunities (including Welsh language), promotes well-being and fair work, and helps embed environmental approaches that reduce harm.

The period from 1 March 2022 to 31 March 2022 was a period of transition for learners previously on the Traineeships programme.

The three strands of JGW+ are Engagement, Advancement, and Employment. Engagement gives learners the opportunity to discover their interests before committing to a course or apprenticeship. Advancement helps learners to gain relevant skills for a particular career path, while Employment supports those who are actively looking for a job.

Positive outcomes are measured on the learner’s destination within four weeks of leaving their JGW+ programme. For learners on the Engagement and Advancement Strands, a positive outcome is either progression to learning at a higher level, progression into employment (full-time, part-time or self-employment) or progression to an Apprenticeship. For learners on the Employment Strand, a positive outcome is either progression into employment (full-time, part-time (16 or more hours per week) or self-employment) or progression to an Apprenticeship.

For disabled learners, employment of less than 16 hours per week is also classed as a positive outcome.

Seeking work/unemployed and instances where the destination within four weeks is not known are classed as negative outcomes.

Voluntary work, further learning at the same or lower level, employment of less than 16 hours per week, and the ‘other’ destinations category are all classed as neutral outcomes. Learners with these outcomes are excluded from the denominator when calculating positive outcome rates. Programmes ended includes those who didn’t complete the course.

Data is drawn from the May 2023 freeze of the Lifelong Learning Wales Record (LLWR). JGW+ Contractors must submit information to the Welsh Government at least monthly on all young people, their programmes, activities and awards under the JGW+ programme.

All numbers have been rounded to the nearest 5. Percentages are calculated on the unrounded numbers.

Relevance

These statistics are important in monitoring the Jobs Growth Wales+ programme and outcomes for participants and have a number of main users which include:

• ministers and Welsh Government officials
• members of the Senedd Cymru/Welsh Parliament and researchers in the Senedd
• JGW+ contract holders, as a management tool to measure their own performance and benchmark themselves against sector averages
• students, academics and universities

Accuracy

The figures in this release reflect the final position of the 2022-23 financial year. Occasionally, revisions can occur due to errors in our statistical processes or when a data supplier notifies the Welsh Government that they have submitted incorrect information. In these cases, a judgement is made as to whether the change is significant enough to publish a revised statistical release. Where changes are not deemed to be significant, figures will be corrected if they appear in future releases.

Timeliness and punctuality

This statistical release is published annually in June and covers the preceding financial year.

Accessibility and clarity

This statistical release is pre-announced and then published on the Statistics & Research website of the Welsh Government. All underlying data for this release are available on StatsWales.

Well-being of Future Generations Act (WFG)

The Well-being of Future Generations Act 2015 is about improving the social, economic, environmental and cultural well-being of Wales. The Act puts in place seven well-being goals for Wales. These are for a more equal, prosperous, resilient, healthier and globally responsible Wales, with cohesive communities and a vibrant culture and thriving Welsh language. Under section (10)(1) of the Act, the Welsh Ministers must (a) publish indicators (“national indicators”) that must be applied for the purpose of measuring progress towards the achievement of the Well-being goals, and (b) lay a copy of the national indicators before Senedd Cymru. Under section 10(8) of the Well-being of Future Generations Act, where the Welsh Ministers revise the national indicators, they must as soon as reasonably practicable (a) publish the indicators as revised and (b) lay a copy of them before the Senedd. These national indicators were laid before the Senedd in 2021. The indicators laid on 14 December 2021 replace the set laid on 16 March 2016.

Information on the indicators, along with narratives for each of the wellbeing goals and associated technical information is available in the Wellbeing of Wales report.

Further information on the Well-being of Future Generations (Wales) Act 2015.

The statistics included in this release could also provide supporting narrative to the national indicators and be used by public services boards in relation to their local wellbeing assessments and local wellbeing plans.

We welcome any feedback on any aspect of these statistics which can be provided by email to post16ed.stats@gov.wales

Statistician: Ian Shipley
Email: post16ed.stats@gov.wales

Media: 0300 025 8099

SFR 53/2023