The Salvation Army is holding a Wrexham event for job seekers. In the area ahead of Employability Day

The open event is happening at the Employment Plus centre of The Salvation Army on Garden Road, LL11 2NU, on Wednesday, September 11.

This comes as the charity calls for more government investment to help those struggling to find work due to long-term issues such as physical and mental health problems, lack of education or skills, or unaffordable childcare.

The Salvation Army's Employment Plus service is funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF), but this is set to end in 2025, putting the future of the service at risk.

Last year, the charity received £49,944 from the fund to support its Wrexham programme, helping up to 60 people who have struggled to find work due to health problems, domestic abuse, homelessness, or other issues.

Rebecca Keating, director of employment services at The Salvation Army, said: "Employability Day is a celebration of the thousands of job seekers who have been helped into work by our employability advisers at The Salvation Army.

"We work with people who are desperate to work but who face the biggest barriers to getting work, such as physical and mental health problems, a lack of education or relevant skills, or unaffordable childcare.

"If the government is to reduce economic inactivity and successfully grow the economy, people who are locked out of the job market must get the support they need to join the workforce."

The Salvation Army’s Employment Plus service operates in 120 communities across the UK, providing a bridge between those furthest from the job market and traditional routes into employment by helping people overcome obstacles to entering the workforce.

The charity's recent report, "Transforming Lives through Employability," found that on top of the 1.5 million people in the UK who are registered as unemployed, there are a further 1.7 million people who are economically inactive but want to work.

That makes the real unemployment figure 3.2 million.

READ MORE:

Only people who are registered as unemployed can receive government-funded employability assistance, so those who can’t register often have nowhere to turn.

Ms Keating added: "Holding back on investment in employability support services is a false economy, as other public services will have to pay the price when economic inactivity pushes people into poverty, homelessness and ill health.

"If the chancellor is serious about lifting communities out of poverty and getting people ready to fill the new jobs she wants to create as part of her growth agenda, we urge her to prioritise long-term funding for local employability services in her first budget this autumn."

The Wrexham event is one of several open events for jobseekers being held across the UK to mark Employability Day on Friday, September 13.

The Salvation Army's Employment Plus service has provided employability support to 40,000 people over the past two years.