Three social enterprises have received £25,000 to boost their work helping hundreds of people get into work.

New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) has awarded additional funding to the Purfleet Trust, in King's Lynn, Action Community Enterprises, Norwich, and Headway Suffolk, through its Community Challenge Fund.

The cash will go towards specific programmes, which were part of a previous wave of funding form the LEP.

Action Community Enterprises' Worksense project aims to engage youngsters through competitive vocational challenges.

The Purfleet Trust's Learn2Earn scheme aims to give people who are facing multiple barriers to employment – including people who have faced domestic abuse or bullying at school – access to skills, volunteering and work experience.

Headway Suffolk is working with people who have a neurological condition, by teaching skills such as CV writing, driving and interview technique.

The three chosen projects have forecast that they will help 64 people to gain paid employment in the next year and an additional 144 people to become work ready.

Doug Field, New Anglia LEP board member and joint chief executive of East of England Co-op, said: 'All the projects funded over the first three years of the Community Challenge Fund are doing vital work, helping hundreds of people into work or into a position where they can confidently look for work. These three projects have shown they deserve the chance to build on their work so far, and continue to make a real difference to the lives of people across the East, while also adding value to our region's economy.'