FUNDING of £7.9 million has been secured to support thousands of Essex residents to improve their numeracy skills, gain a qualification, get into employment, and build their confidence.

The Department for Education has accepted Essex County Council’s (ECC) case for ‘Multiply’, part of a new Government initiative to help residents across the country improve their numeracy skills.

The funding, which will be spread over the next three years, has been secured following analysis of skill levels which showed a significant gap in adult numeracy in Essex compared to the national average. This can limit people’s ability to get a job and to get promoted in work.

To address this, Multiply aims to raise participation in learning and attainment in maths up to NVQ2 (Good GCSE) for adults aged 19 and over.

Essex’s Multiply programme will offer short, practical courses showcasing maths tools which can be used in everyday life, providing support for adults with things like the cost of living, helping children with their schoolwork, accessing employment, and getting a promotion at work. 

There will be courses for beginners and those who want to build on the foundations of their maths knowledge, through to more advanced courses such as GCSE maths.

ECC has pitched for and been awarded an initial grant of £2.4m to deliver 3,400 opportunities by March 2023.

The nature of the challenge Essex faces has encouraged us to reach for the stars to attempt to bridge the county’s skills gap. Whilst ECC recognises that it will be a stretching target to reach in year one, it is nonetheless an important one.

By March 2025, 14,200 residents will participate in education and training and wraparound support through the scheme.  

The programme will be delivered through a range of skills providers with the support of partners, voluntary and community organisations, as well as ECC services such as ACL Essex (Adult Community Learning) and Essex Libraries.

Cllr Tony Ball, ECC’s Cabinet Member for Education Excellence, Lifelong Learning and Employability, said: “We are thrilled to have been awarded this funding to deliver a Multiply scheme here in Essex.

“Multiply will enable us to boost residents’ confidence in maths, helping them do their jobs well, encouraging families to support their children with their schoolwork and providing residents with new tools to manage their household finances.

“The project will also work with employers in Essex to encourage and support staff to train, helping to fill skills gaps and to deliver economic growth.

“The programme supports our Everyone’s Essex Plan by helping to ensure residents of the county are equipped with the skills needed to secure good jobs, now and in the future, and will also help us meet our ambitions to support disadvantaged residents, as set out in our Levelling Up Essex Strategy.”

Multiply will build upon the Essex Year of Reading (2022) and will complement next year’s planned Year of Numbers.

There are also plans to deliver bespoke modules to fill skills gaps from employers as set out in ECC’s Sector Development Strategy.