The Salvation Army has warned that organisations helping unemployed people find work may be left with a funding "black hole" in the aftermath of Brexit.
In the last eight years, The Salvation Army's Employment Plus programme has provided assistance to over 10,000 people, but the Church and charity says that its future has been thrown into doubt by Brexit.
The service helps unemployed people become work-ready, find a job and stay in work. It is especially aimed at people who have complex needs, or who may have fallen through the gaps in society and need additional help in becoming part of the workforce.
The programme's clients are often people The Salvation Army already has a relationship of trust with, such as those who use its charity shops or meal services, and who may be put off by mainstream services because they find them intimidating or unfamiliar.
The programme is nearly two-thirds funded by the European Social Fund (ESF) and despite the close deadline for Britain's departure from the European Union, The Salvation Army says there has been "little information" from the Government as to how these services will be funded post-Brexit.
A buffer period will see the ESF funding continue until 2020 and the Government has announced a UK Shared Prosperity fund to support programmes after this point but it has not yet clarified exactly how it will operate or how the funds will be allocated.
The Salvation Army said the lack of information made it impossible to plan ahead and had led to increasing concerns about the future of its Employment Plus programme.
It is asking the Government to provide more clarity on post-Brexit funding for the programme. The call comes ahead of Employability Day on June 28, which celebrates specialist services running across the UK to help the unemployed get back into work.
The Salvation Army's Employment Plus Director, Rebecca Keating, said: "It is not clear if the funds that the UK Government are proposing to replace ESF money will be ring-fenced to protect employment and training.
"The funding could become narrowed or spent only on structural investment to regenerate areas. And this doesn't help the people who are currently unemployed.
"We are working with people who are sleeping rough, who aren't claiming benefits, who don't have a home address, who aren't going to benefit from a new bridge or supermarket."
Catherine McCrory, 41, was able to receive help from The Salvation Army's Employment Plus programme in Cardiff, which is fully funded by the ESF.
She was referred to the programme by her local job centre after finding herself out of work and unsure what to do when her six month temporary contract as a charity administrator came to an end.
At the time, she was also volunteering at a local breakfast club for people in poverty run by Splott Community Volunteers.
She found out through the Employment Plus programme that if she took on a few extra duties, her volunteering could turn into a six month work placement.
She agreed to take on the extra duties and became the first person on the Employment Plus Active Inclusion project in the city to embark on this type of placement.
The work placement included manning the reception, doing the administration, helping to organise community events and taking the minutes at meetings.
Describing the experience, she said it had given her the confidence to go out and find another job.
"The work placement was life-changing, it meant everything to me. I absolutely loved it. It was a paid job, and I was also able to do a course in customer service," she said.
"It has put me in a position to be able to confidently go to find myself another job, it has helped me develop my CV and I feel really happy. I now feel positive about my future."
Ndjoli Marie Juami, a mother-of-four, approached the Employment Plus in Hoxton, London, for help because her hours as a cleaner were unstable.
She ended up joining a course provided by Goals UK at The Salvation Army to help boost confidence and empower people in moving forward to achieve their goals.
The 36-year-old is now due to start work as a nanny in September but she also has a long-term vision to study social work with the hopes of securing work in the future in this field.
She said: "[The course] has really helped me to be confident when doing job interviews. Before when I have been interviewed I wasn't confident enough. I was shy to talk to people at an interview. Now I feel very confident to go to an interview and talk to people who have been doing the job for 15 years."
She added: "As a mum of four I have always wanted to work with children. The course through The Salvation Army has motivated me to eventually open my own nursery, and to have the confidence that I can do more than I thought possible."
