UK charity, Christians Against Poverty (CAP), which runs face-to-face job clubs in communities across the UK, has published a new report revealing the challenges UK job seekers are facing and what needs to be addressed to get more people back into work.
CAP’s latest report, ‘Barriers to Work: Challenges, support and solutions’, has identified the challenges people face with confidence, self-esteem, and lack of skills, which can be further exacerbated by the experience of unemployment itself.
Barriers into work identified:
- Confidence & self-esteem: A quarter (24%) of adults not currently in work say that a lack of confidence and self-esteem has made it difficult for them to enter employment in the past two years.
- Unsuccessful applications: Around 9 million UK adults report having been unsuccessful in 10 or more job applications in the past 12 months.
- Experience & skills: 14% think that they do not have enough experience to be successful at getting a role. 10% think that they do not currently have the necessary skills they need for work.
Negative impacts of unemployment:
- Half (49%) of unemployed people say being out of work is having a negative impact on their mental health.
However, 2 in 5 (39%) say that they would find in-person support to get into work helpful and communities across the UK are already delivering this. CAP job clubs, in partnership with local churches, are providing free person-centred support for people on their journey into work.
Amy was supported back into work by her local CAP Job Club. She says:
“After losing my job at a nursery, I was left paying high bills all on just £500 a month from Universal Credit. I often went days without eating, as going without food was the only ‘affordable’ thing to cut.
“Losing my job had completely destroyed my self-worth. The CAP Job Club was incredibly welcoming, and it was the first place where people actually saw my strengths. It helped me realise I do have worth and that someone cares about my success.
“The sessions gave me the confidence to apply for jobs again. I now work full-time. I owe so much to the job club for helping me to break out of that shell and become the confident person I am today.”
Report author, Kiri Adams, says:
“For many, the job market isn’t a ladder—it’s a fortress with the drawbridge raised. Millions are drowning in a moat of rejection and red tape, locked out by a broken system that wastes the UK’s greatest resource: its people.
“CAP Job Clubs prove that personal investment and care and support makes a big impact in helping people to thrive. By offering face-to-face encouragement and skills training, we rebuild the confidence people need to lower that bridge, overcome barriers, and return to work with purpose.”