Funding has been granted for East Midlands' authorities to launch a regional online jobs portal.

Fifteen authorities have agreed to participate to date, and all other authorities in the region are being invited to join the initiative. The portal will provide significant savings for local authorities and a better service for job seekers. In these challenging times, the portal can also be used to advertise redeployment opportunities.

Background
NorthEastJobs.org was successfully launched in March 2009, providing a one-stop-shop for local authority jobs in the North East. Its success has led to further funding being made available from Communities and Local Government to roll out the portal in other regions. The portal, which is provided by Tribal, is going live in the South East shortly, followed by the South West and the East Midlands.

The portal has delivered significant efficiencies in the North East - a top tier authority can expect to make annual savings of up to £350k. In addition, it provides an easy-to-use service for people looking for work and allows job opportunities to be better shared between authorities.

Benefits for job seekers
The portal allows job seekers to search quickly for positions, be alerted when suitable jobs become available, apply for vacancies online, or join the talent pool to showcase their skills and advertise themselves to prospective employers. Job seekers can take advantage of helpful processes such as pre-populated application forms, qualifications advice and an online assessment centre.

Benefits for authorities
Using the online portal saves money on newspaper advertising costs and reduces staff time spent dealing with paper applications. Workforce development tools will also be available to authorities, allowing skills and employability testing, introducing induction programmes and enabling CRB pre-processing. The portals are free to authorities for the first 12 months, with a low annual subscription thereafter.

Interested?
If your authority is interested in joining this initiative, please contact:

Sarah Short
East Midlands Councils
Email: sarah.short@emcouncils.gov.uk
Tel: 01664 502 620

or

Merlin Tinker,
East Midlands Improvement and Efficiency Partnership
Email: merlin.tinker@nottscc.gov.uk
Tel: 07534 266 228

A detailed demonstration of the portal system took place on Monday 7th June and will be run again in July.

The North East RIEP have produced a short FAQ document to answer the most common questions authorities may have, which is available here.