Many SMEs will not have in house HR departments and are therefore likely to need advice and support when starting to engage with priority groups. It will be extremely helpful for them if you are able to signpost them to organisations in the local area who will be able to meet their needs most effectively.

It will help if you are knowledgeable about the organisations that operate in your local area, including:

• The types of services they provide to employers (e.g. job advertising, pre-screening, aftercare, etc).
• The levels of support that they provide to both clients and employers
• The types of clients they work with.
• The different ways that employers can become involved (e.g. Pre-employment initiatives).
• Contact details for individual organisations (including where possible a named contact within the organisation).

Try to familiarise yourself with other sources of advice and support, such as websites and online resources.

The section on sources of support will provide you with details of the main national providers of employability services for priority groups, some of whom may be operating in your local area.

However, there will also be independent locally-based employability organisations working with a range of priority groups, and it will help if you take the time to research and become familiar with these organisations, in order to signpost employers to the organisations that are most appropriate to their needs.

If you signpost an employer to a particular employability organisation, you should always follow up and check whether this has been successful for the employer. If it has not been a successful contact for them you should take the time to find out why and be able to offer alternatives where possible.