Essential Digital Skills & AI Employability Project
Making employability support fit for the age of AI
FutureDotNow’s essential digital skills AI employability pilot tested whether equipping job seekers with essential digital and AI skills could boost confidence, capability and job-readiness, and ultimately improve an individual’s chance of getting a job.
Delivered in South-West England, it focused on strengthening existing provision rather than creating something new, showing how targeted changes can unlock confidence, capability and readiness for work.
Essential digital and AI upskilling
Essential digital and AI upskilling nearly doubled job outcomes.
Participants in the pilot were twice as likely to enter employment – 26% secured work within four months vs 14% on the standard programme.
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A South-West pilot, built for scale
Delivered by FutureDotNow in partnership with Cosmic and Accenture, and funded by the Digital Inclusion Innovation Fund, the pilot embedded within the DWP Restart programme and delivered across communities in Cornwall, Devon, Somerset and Wiltshire. Cosmic led delivery with jobseekers, adapting the programme to build essential digital and AI skills through supported, tutor‑led learning. Accenture worked with employers to understand how digital expectations for entry‑level roles are changing.
What we learned
Many jobseekers lack confidence in digital skills that employers increasingly assume as a baseline.
A practical, supported introduction to AI can spark curiosity and engagement.
Building essential digital skills supports confidence and independence, not just employability outcomes.
Explore the work
Download the full report
Read the findings, insights and recommendations from the AI employability pilot.
Toolkit coming soon
A practical toolkit to support commissioners and providers to replicate the model within existing employability programmes will launch this summer.
