Green travel project provides new jobs for local people

Plymouth City Council has created temporary jobs for 13 local people through the second phase of its Plymotion on Your Doorstep campaign.

A team of travel advisors have been recruited to go out and visit local residents, giving one-to-one advice on different ways to get around the city, as well as information about various discounts and incentives on offer.

The campaign is part of the Council’s wider Plymotion project, which aims to improve walking, cycling and public transport links and encourage people to try greener, cheaper and healthier ways of getting from A to B.

The travel advisors were recruited through Pertemps, who currently provide the Council’s temporary agency workers and Working Links, who offer support for people trying to find work.

Before hitting the road they underwent a week of expert training, supported by local bus and rail companies, cycling organisations and community transport representatives. They were also kitted out in Plymotion polo shirts, hoodies and coats, to help raise awareness of the project and give members of the public confidence that they are working as part of the Plymotion programme.

During their initial visits in May the travel advisors were accompanied by a member of the Plymotion team to make sure they were confident in providing advice to residents. They’ve now visited almost 6,000 properties in Keyham and Devonport and provided information at 16 community events.

Councillor Mark Coker, Cabinet Member for Transport, said: “The team are doing a fantastic job and getting some really positive and constructive comments. This isn’t just about us telling people what travel options are available – the team are also finding out what would encourage people to walk, cycle and travel by bus more.

“One of the main aims of Plymotion is to improve access to employment, healthcare, education and leisure opportunities. Thanks to our collaborative working with Pertemps and Working Links, the programme is also directly creating jobs for local people looking for work. These are seasonal posts but are giving the travel advisors valuable experience, developing their skills and improving their future employability.”

By working on the Plymotion on Your Doorstep programme, the travel advisors are gaining a wide range of skills and experience in customer relations, team working, communication, IT and data handling, which will help them to secure future work.

Comments from residents have included:

• “Lovely service, great idea, very helpful and polite advisor.”
• “Excellent, that’s all I can say, very well conducted. Brilliant service. Lovely.”
• “More of it! Quite nice to have someone to come to your door to offer advice and try to help.”
• “My wife is disabled, so they spoke about Access Plymouth, told us about things we didn’t know, which was really useful.”
• “We used the map to walk with my nine-year-old to Central Park, as we didn’t realise how close it was.”

Michelle White, Pertemps Director, said: "Pertemps has an excellent working relationship with Plymouth City Council and we regularly tailor our recruitment solutions to meet their specific needs. We are delighted to hear that the people of Plymouth have reacted so favourably to the new recruits as Pertemps takes great pride in matching the right candidate to every role required. This is further evidence of our commitment to help local people find rewarding jobs within their local communities."

Kelly Crane, Employer Services Consultant for Working Links, added: “This was an excellent example of partnership working; Working Links supporting the Council in not only recruiting local people but also addressing the Council’s social inclusion agenda by supporting unemployed people into work.”

The team are just about to start visiting households in Stonehouse so look out for their distinctive bright blue uniforms and postcards letting you know they are on their way. If you missed them while they were in Keyham and Devonport they will be holding a drop-in session at St Aubyn Library on Wednesday 24 July between 10.30am and 1pm.

For more information visit www.plymouth.gov.uk.plymotiononyourdoorstep, email plymotion@plymouth.gov.uk or call 01752 668000.