A CHARITY will be able to help more people get back into employment after moving to a new home.

Home to Work, which is based in Cleator Moor, Cumbria, is expanding its services after taking on a second building in the town.

The move means its Skills 4 You workshop courses and support services will be delivered from its current centre at Ennerdale Road as well as the new premises on High Street.

Skills 4 You aim to build people’s confidence, help them find ways to cope with anxiety and depression, and give them essential skills to better equip them for the workplace.

The charity has teamed up with BEC, a profit-for-purpose property firm, to share its offices in the Old Board of Trade building, which has become the new head office of Home to Work, as well as a base for its employment support and advice services, and a therapy space.

Karen Jones, Managing director of Home to Work, said the charity had been looking to expand for some time.

She said: “We have a waiting list of people wanting to use our services but we simply didn’t have the space before to accommodate them.

“The new building will transform the way we work and allow us to expand our services across the two sites, reaching more people than ever.

“We’re looking at offering new courses in furniture restoration and cookery, alongside our established workshops in woodwork and crafts, which will continue at our Ennerdale Road centre.

“This is such a moment of growth for the charity and we’re very excited about the possibilities for the future.”

The move was made possible thanks to the support of BEC, which agreed to rent its Cleator Moor office to the charity.

Joe Martin, head of progragrammes at BEC said: “We have all had to respond to Covid and BEC is no different - our utilisation of the Cleator Moor office space has dropped significantly since the start of the pandemic as we have had to adapt to more flexible working practices.

“When we heard that Karen had been really struggling to find more space to expand their amazing work in the community in Cleator Moor and beyond, it made complete sense to come to a mutually beneficial arrangement.

“BEC will retain a small presence in the building for our team to work flexibly.”