A social value project to get more people into work has been shortlisted for a prestigious employability award.

The Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) between University of the West of Scotland, Innovate UK and Routes to Work, which has developed an evaluation framework to quantify and measure the impact of Routes to Work's ground-breaking employability interventions, has been announced as a finalist in the ERSA Employability Awards for 2023.

Routes To Work is a third sector employability organisation based in North Lanarkshire which supports people to achieve their aims and contribute to the economy, to reduce poverty and ensure everyone has a good quality of life. 

The project has enabled Routes to Work to measure the outcomes of its clients’ journeys towards, into and during employment, taking into account the social value of the service, both for users and the wider community.

This pioneering approach to social value has been supported through a Management KTP, led by the School of Business and Creative Industries, in collaboration with the School of Health and Life Sciences at the University.

The work draws on expertise from a number of academic areas, including: management, economics, health and digital marketing. 

The project has been recognised in the ‘Social Value Award – Working for Everyone’ category of the ERSA Employability Awards, which celebrates initiatives that have delivered over and above requirements and provided exceptional value for money, both in terms of the public purse and value in communities.

Robin Turner, Chief Executive Officer of Routes to Work, said: “Being shortlisted for a national award for the first time in our 21-year history feels like a hugely significant milestone for the organisation and one which fully recognises the time effort invested in our social value journey by so many people both within Routes to Work and our KTP partners. The richness of our partnership comes as a result of the shared vision and commitment of the individuals involved in developing something that is ground-breaking, and which truly has the potential to change the way employability services are valued for the wider impact they deliver within communities. We are both fortunate and privileged to be part of this wonderful partnership.”

Dr Christine Reilly, KTP Academic Lead and Senior Lecturer within the School of Business and Creative Industries at UWS, said: “I am delighted that Routes to Work have been recognised for their commitment to drive forward social value within the employability field. It is great to see the work that our multidisciplinary academic team have done in collaboration with Routes to Work be valued by the wider employment support sector.”

This is the UK's first charity-based management KTP, involving nine members of staff from across two Schools at UWS, working in partnership with Routes to Work to deliver both societal and economic impact. The project is an exemplar of how the KTP model can be applied within the third sector.

Stuart McKay, Senior KTP Manager at UWS

Jim Berryman, Knowledge Transfer Adviser at Innovate UK, said: “The KTP project between UWS and Routes to Work is a great example of collaboration working in practice to deliver transformative change. This is not only pioneering the innovative application of emergent academic research, but it is making great strides in quantifying the outcomes delivered by Routes to Work through a robust process of validating social value. I am delighted to be involved in this project and seeing it deliver such meaningful impacts.”

Now in their eleventh year, the ERSA Employability Awards exemplify the dedication, creativity, and determination of everyone working for better work. Drawn across 12 categories, the finalists have been chosen by an independent panel of experts from more than 300 entries.

Find out more about the awards here.

You can read more about Routes to Work here.