Skills for Education and Employment

Eligibility

You may be eligible for the Skills for Education and Employment program if you're:

• 15 to 64 years of age and looking for full time work
• registered as an active job seeker with jobactive, Disability Employment Services or the Community Development Programme
• an Australian citizen or permanent resident, or have the right to work in Australia, and
• receiving one of these payments:
  • Disability Support Pension
  • Newstart Allowance
  • Parenting Payment
  • Partner Allowance
  • Widow Allowance
  • Widow B Pension
  • Youth Allowance
  • Special Benefit

You may also be eligible for the program if you are:

• 15 to 21 years of age - even if you don't receive an income support payment, or
• a migrant serving the 104 week newly arrived residents waiting period for income support payments

Referral, assessment and training

When you first register as a job seeker, we'll check your eligibility for the program. If you're eligible, we'll organise an appointment for you with a local training provider. They will assess your speaking, reading, writing and maths skills and offer training.

The training is:

• 10 to 25 hours a week
• in small, friendly groups with other people who need help with reading, writing and maths
• run by staff with experience teaching adults
• available in your own home by distance education if you're a carer or can't attend face to face training

The training will give you more confidence when looking for work. It will make it easier for you to fill in forms, write letters, and prepare resumés and job applications.

Language, Literacy and Numeracy Supplement

You may be eligible to receive the Language, Literacy and Numeracy Supplement if you're in the Skills for Education and Employment program and receive one of these payments:

• Disability Support Pension
• Newstart Allowance
• Parenting Payment
• Partner Allowance
• Widow Allowance
• Youth Allowance

The supplement is $20.80 per fortnight.

You don't need to submit a claim to receive this payment. If you're eligible, it will automatically be paid with your regular payment every fortnight while you're in the program.

You can't get the supplement if you receive:

• Pensioner Education Supplement or ABSTUDY Pensioner Education Supplement
• an Approved Program of Work Supplement, which is paid to people doing Work for the Dole, Green Army part time or some Community Development Programme activities

Manage your money

Getting control of your money can be hard, but we’ve got some great advice and tools to help. Read more about budgeting, borrowing and credit, and managing debt, to help manage your money.