Amber Hickman |
Microsoft has teamed up with British multinational bank Barclays, LinkedIn and charity Breaking Barriers to develop a new programme that will help refugees in the UK develop employability skills.
The Unlocking Refugee Talent programme will combine the resources of all four partners to help support refugees struggling to find work due to language barriers or a lack of access to technology.
“A lack of digital skills is often a significant barrier into employment for any job hunter,” said Matt Powell, CEO of Breaking Barriers. “For refugees, the digital skills obstacle is further exacerbated as they find it four times harder to access employment.
“Unlocking Refugee Talent is breaking down the digital skills barrier by drawing on the resources, talent and offers of all the partners. Together, we aim to help refugees find meaningful employment while also starting to fill a UK-wide workforce gap in digital skills.”
Microsoft will offer digital skills training through its Skills for Jobs platform and donate Surface devices for individuals in the programme.
The programme will run for the next 18 months and will initially support 250 people.