About The RAP Project

The project has been running since 2004. RAP is aimed at those people aged 18+ from Wolverhampton's Priority Neighbourhoods, however, we are interested to hear from anyone living or working in the city of Wolverhampton with enquiries.

Commissioned by the Local Strategic Partnership, the Regeneration Apprentices Programme (RAP) provides learning opportunities for individuals who are looking for employment, to enter education or training, find volunteer roles or get involved in local groups and projects. We are particularly interested in working with people who have an interest in the life of their community, their city, and in regeneration. The project provides guidance, training and support that are tailored to fit a customer's skills gaps, regardless of qualifications, experience, or employment status. The RAP project provides two main services which are:

• One-to-One Coaching
• Courses and Workshops

One-to-One Coaching

The One-to-One Apprentice strand of the RAP project is all about developing the skills of individuals. Participants are invited to attend coaching sessions, which usually last just under an hour and generally take place at YMCA - although we can arrange to meet you at venues around the city. The coaching sessions aim to enable you to develop the skills you need to gain employment, get to college, become a volunteer or get involved in local groups, events and activities. The coaching sessions build on your existing experience and focus on developing the skills you want to learn - for example, completing a job application form, practicing an interview, beginning to develop your own business or looking to gain voluntary experience.

You can opt to attend just one coaching session, for some people this is enough to start getting shortlisted for jobs, or to build the confidence to consider going to college for the first time. Most people attend between four and six sessions, and some attend coaching only occasionally and in between appointments stay in regular contact by telephone and email. In between coaching sessions, most people try a combination of different activities that might include networking, job shadowing, structured interviewing, working on a job application, attending courses & conferences, ‘work experience,' trips or visits, research, reading, and so forth - any learning opportunity to learn and develop.

As well as your coaching sessions, RAP can also provide you will RAP Workbooks which follow on this handbook. RAP Workbooks cover specific development areas such as ‘Assertiveness,' ‘Applying for Jobs,' and ‘Interview Skills,' ‘Presentation Skills,' and ‘Leadership Skills,' for example.

Courses and Workshops

The RAP project provides a number of workshops which have been developed in response to the needs of local people. These include:

‘Community Skills'

•  Assertiveness
•  Presentation Skills
•  Listening Skills
•  Culture and Communication
•  Body Language
•  Design and Marketing for Groups and Organisations

‘Job Doctor' Employment Skills Workshops
RAP's ‘Job Doctor' Workshops were developed in 2008 have been well received. A number of people who have attended these sessions have gained employment and been shortlisted for interviews within days of taking part. The ‘Job Doctor' workshops cover:

• Easy ways to write a C.V.
• Painless ways to complete application forms.
• Practice for a job interview and develop enough confidence to enjoy the interview experience.

Each ‘Job Doctor' workshop is slightly different as we only focus on the skills that participants are interested in developing on the day. There are plenty of materials to take away and many people combine attendance on a ‘Job Doctor' workshop with participation in One-to-One Coaching in order to really solve a tricky problem like writing a Personal Statement in a job application or building the confidence to present yourself in a job interview.

‘Job Doctor' Thinking of Developing Your Own Business
This session is run on a One-to-One basis only, lasts for 2 - 3 hours and helps get you started if you are thinking of running your own business but are not quite sure where to begin. The RAP project has seen a number of people get started in business as a result of taking part in this session.

Further information from:

Black Country Chamber of Commerce www.blackcountrychamber.co.uk
Black Country Connexions www.connexions-bc.org.uk
City of Wolverhampton College www.wolverhamptoncollege.ac.uk
Jobcentre plus www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk
Regeneration West Midlands www.regenwm.org.uk
University of Wolverhampton www.wlv.ac.uk
Wolverhampton City Council www.wlv.ac.uk
Wolverhampton Partnership http://www.wton-partnership.org.uk/inovem/inovem.ti/system/homepage

Contact Information:
Marie Cooper, RAP Project Manager, Wolverhampton YMCA, 29-31 Temple Street, Wolverhampton WV2 4AN Tel: 01902 771235 Email: marie.cooper@ymca-wolverhampton.co.uk