Latest news with #YouthGuarantee
BBC News
23-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Youth Guarantee scheme helping young people out of unemployment
A new scheme to help almost 500 young people into work has launched across the West of region is one of eight pilot areas trialling a "Youth Guarantee", which the government said will give every young person "a real chance of either earning or learning".At a cost of £5m, the scheme is aiming to reach 17-21 year olds in south Bristol, rural areas of north east Somerset, and those with special needs or mental health conditions in South Gloucestershire. Experts say that building long-term trust between young people and career coaches will be key to the success of the scheme. Work opportunities Blake Smith-Helps is one of the first people to take part in the Youth Guarantee Scheme, which offers young people in south Bristol four weeks of intensive careers coaching followed by a two-week work placement."No one wanted to hire me because I had no qualifications," he said, until the job centre pointed him towards the scheme, which he said so far has been "great".Now he has the possibility of a placement on the construction site of the new South Bristol Youth Zone, as he explores whether to go into construction or art and design. Details of the scheme vary across each of the three council areas in the West of England, but all participants are offered a free bus pass to make it easier to travel to work Bath and North East Somerset, the council is also offering e-bike loans or access to community minibuses. It says work placements might be a couple of days or a week, and there will be interview days with in South Gloucestershire, the scheme is aimed at primarily at young people with special educational or mental health needs. Those taking part will get up to four weeks of careers coaching and an eight-week placement. Bristol City Council has chosen to open its scheme to those living in south Bristol, the area of the city with the highest levels of youth Hartcliffe & Withywood more than one in 10 16-17 year olds are recorded as being "not in education, employment or training" (NEET), almost twice as high as the average for of those classed as NEET have spent time in college or sixth form before dropping out, according to a recent council authority is bringing in four new career coaches to add to an existing team of six, as it promises young people will get continued support after the Youth Guarantee is no guarantee of a job for participants, and Becci Newton from the Institute of Employment Studies says that building trust between young people and their career coach will be important if the scheme is to succeed."There's a lot of enthusiasm that the funding is coming in,"she said. "It's important that we try to work out what can work sustainably." Skills shortages Construction company Galliford Try hopes to offer seven placements on the South Bristol Youth Zone Community Manager Dawn Jevons said it makes a difference knowing that those on the scheme are receiving wraparound support from the whether it was realistic for someone to be offered a job after a two week placement, she said "it does happen", as construction companies seeks to fill skills shortages across the West of England Combined Authority is appealing for more businesses to come forward to support the scheme."We're not just looking for big employers with big shiny offices," said Helen Godwin, the Mayor of the West of England."It can be a bit scary to take on somebody who's not experienced work before," she added."We can offer support around that. Think about how good it will feel to give someone that opportunity."
Yahoo
10-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Cumbria Chamber urges Government to back business growth in spending review
Fresh calls have been made for the Government to prioritise business growth ahead. Cumbria Chamber of Commerce has joined the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and chambers across the UK to urge the Government to put business growth at the centre of its spending plans. The call comes ahead of Wednesday's Comprehensive Spending Review, which will set out the Government's budget priorities. Suzanne Caldwell, managing director of Cumbria Chamber of Commerce, said: "Wednesday's Comprehensive Spending Review will impact the future shape of our economy for years. "So the Government can't afford to get this wrong. "At the end of the day it's businesses that create wealth and growth in our economy. "So fundamentally the Government needs to put more time, money and effort into supporting business. "That's a downpayment on our future prosperity." The chambers have outlined a series of recommendations under three themes: Get Britain Thriving, Get Britain Working, and Get Britain Trading. These calls focus on improved investment in infrastructure, people, and international trade. Recommendations include funding for transport and energy projects, better grid connectivity, long-term support for Project Gigabit, and practical help for SMEs to adopt artificial intelligence (AI). When it comes to getting Britain working, the chambers want more Apprenticeship Levy funding redirected to the Department for Education to boost training, and a broader Youth Guarantee for 18- to 24-year-olds. The chambers want more employers to be involved in skills planning by extending investment in Local Skills Improvement Plans and addressing gaps in training provision. On trade, the chambers are calling for investment in 'digital trade', better export support for SMEs, and a stronger pipeline of overseas investment. The recommendations were developed through consultation between the 51 chambers across the UK, the BCC, and the BCC's Business Council. They are also backed by research from the BCC's Insights Unit, which gathered feedback from more than 5,000 businesses on the biggest barriers to growth. Ms Caldwell said: "If the Government wants strong and consistent economic growth, it has to look at three key areas. "It must promote consistent investment in people, in infrastructure and in trade. "If it provides the support businesses need to thrive, in an increasingly competitive and protectionist global market, then the future can still be bright."
Yahoo
31-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
The 'important and urgent' issue of getting our young people into work
ONE of the challenges we face as a region is the growing number of young people not in work, education or training (so called NEETs) in the north east and Cumbria. It's an important and urgent issue, and one I discussed on a recent visit to Carlisle Jobcentre Plus. Unlocking the talent of our young people is key to our country's future. As part of its Get Britain Working plan, the biggest reform to employment support in a generation, the Government has raised the National Living Wage, improved working conditions through landmark employment legislation and begun to create jobs in high potential areas, such as clean energy industries, advanced manufacturing and defence. A central element of this plan is the new 'Youth Guarantee', which will support thousands of 18 to 21-year-olds into education, employment or training. Teesside, over in the north east, is one of eight trailblazer areas for the Youth Guarantee Scheme. This means it is a pilot for new approaches which, if successful, will be rolled out across the country. But that doesn't mean there's a lack of support for young people here in Carlisle and north Cumbria. Far from it. For example, the government is providing support to employers to take on young apprentices, including funding training costs for small businesses for apprentices aged 16-18, and removing National Insurance contributions for employers of apprentices under 25. A reformed Skills Levy will help ensure that a more skilled and adaptable workforce goes hand-in-hand with greater opportunity. On my recent visit to Carlisle Jobcentre Plus I saw for myself the tailored support available to 16–24 year-olds in their Youth Hub. Through partnerships with organisations like the Cumbria Youth Alliance, it provides access to careers advice, employability coaching, and connections to local services. Help is on hand for essential skills such as CV writing, interview preparation and job searches, as well as access to training opportunities. But if these efforts are going to be successful, we need young people to meet us halfway. If someone on benefits refuses to take up the support offered by a work coach without good reason, there will be benefits sanctions. This isn't about creating a blame culture; it's about fairness. Those who can work should work, so we are able to support those who genuinely can't. By working together, the government, employers, and young people can build an environment where everyone has the chance to thrive, whether they live in the north east, Cumbria, or beyond.
BBC News
25-05-2025
- Business
- BBC News
'We're not snowflakes, looking for a job is tough'
"It's a bit demoralising," says 22-year-old Katie Abbas about the hundreds of jobs she's applied for over the past year, with no has been among thousands of young people at a jobs fair in Liverpool's Anfield Stadium, at which the Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall launched the government's Youth Guarantee Trailblazers programme last scheme aims to offer tailored support for 18 to 21 year olds as they try to find comes as new figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed 987,000 people aged between 16 and 24 are not in education, employment or training across the UK. Katie, who is from Liverpool, said looking for a job had been tough since graduating from university last hopes to become an interior designer or use her languages degree in some way."It is stressful - constantly worrying about money. Even just wondering if I can afford this weekly shop?"And then looking for a career on top of that, is even more demoralising because I am not getting any income so I am struggling to kick-start my career." Katie faces the usual conundrum for people starting on the work ladder, where she says employers are "looking for experience but I can't get the experience when I need experience to get the experience."It's frustrating."She says she would welcome tailored support but it was ultimately down to employers to "take a chance" on young is among eight English regions that have been allocated a total of £45m by the government to help people into work as part of the youth guarantee other areas include the East and West Midlands, Tees Valley, West of England, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, and two in scheme will focus on vulnerable young people who face the most barriers, including care leavers - nearly 40% of whom are not in employment, education or training, according to the is expected to include training opportunities, free travel passes, mental health support and money advice. Jenny Smith, 24, from St Helens, became a mum 18 months ago and has already had a confidence boost after getting support from an employment officer following help from the Liverpool City now works in the care sector after receiving assistance with interview and CV says the biggest barrier for her had been finding a job that she could fit around child care and she recommends young people be upfront when discussing flexible working with potential employers."If you ask them, they will work around you. It is daunting but if you don't ask, you don't get." Aleesha Carroll, 19, from Kirkby, said a skills bootcamp had helped her land a dream job in early years child said not knowing what jobs were out there was a barrier for her."I did an early years boot camp after coming to a jobs fair two years ago, now I am working in a nursery and I love it, I come to work with a smile on my face every day."In the Liverpool City Region, there is a one-stop shop for careers advice on the BeMore app alongside physical hubs across the area's six Steve Rotheram said some of the stories he had heard from young people had been "heart-breaking"."What we try to do is give them the wraparound support – it could be debt advice it could be bereavement support, it could be help with all sorts of relationship issues."It's not about a lack of talent, it's about a lack of opportunity". 'Not snowflakes' James Barber, 23, runs a tech start-up called Harker in said today's young people face specific challenges because of their experiences with the teenagers may have stopped attending school during that time, leaving them outside education and less likely to access training and believes "lots of employers might not recognise that".James rejects any suggestion that today's twenty-somethings are "snowflakes" who just need to pull their socks up and work in the same way previous generations did."If you want to get the best out of people you have to provide the environment which gets the most out of them," he said."These days people can work from anywhere – even their phone. Embrace it."Employers should empower employees to work the best they can." The work and pensions secretary said at Anfield: "Young people are our future – and yet for too long they have been denied access to the opportunities and support they need."At Liverpool FC, the home of champions, we are championing young people to get the skills, education and jobs they require to achieve their ambitions."She said the government was investing the £45m, "including almost £5m here in Liverpool, to deliver our Youth Guarantee, so every young person across England gets the chance to earn or learn, as we boost living standards and get Britain working under the Plan for Change". Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram and watch BBC North West Tonight on BBC iPlayer. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
Yahoo
24-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
‘Covid generation' left behind by Labour's bid to beat worklessness
Youngsters whose education was blighted by Covid are now too old to benefit from the latest scheme for jobseekers, the Government has been warned. Those who studied for their A-levels or college qualifications during the first lockdown are now typically 22 or older – but the new jobs guarantee scheme applies only to those aged up to 21. Stephen Evans, the chief executive of the Learning and Work Institute, a think tank, warned that people who lost out on getting a job because of lockdown are now at risk of missing out again. He said: 'The Youth Guarantee, which is a good idea, is focused on 18 to 21-year-olds, making sure they get help to find a job or apprenticeship, and actually it really needs to be 16 to 24-year-olds. Your problems don't stop when you turn 22.' Half of all 22 to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment, or training – officially known as Neets – have never had a job. At that point 'it becomes more and more difficult', said Mr Evans. 'Employers look at your CV and see you have no work experience, and you end up at the back of the queue. We need urgent action for that group, not just the 18 to 21-year olds.' Liz Kendall, the Work and Pensions Secretary, launched the £45m jobseekers scheme at an event in Liverpool, promising to help match young people with jobs or training programmes. It comes as new figures show there are 923,000 people aged 16 to 24 who are Neets. While down from the peak over winter, it is still up from 750,000 before the pandemic, according to the Office for National Statistics. Almost 500,000 of them are aged between 21 and 24. Mr Evans said: 'You have got a bit of the pandemic generation coming through here, who had disrupted education and then disrupted transitions into work, and you've got the longer-term decline of people working alongside education as well, the classic Saturday jobs. 'This is particularly worrying.' In a shift from historical trends, young men are now roughly as likely as young women to be classed as economically inactive Neets – those who are neither in work nor looking for work, nor in education. In part that is because girls and women tend to leave school, college and university with better grades, while women are less likely now than in the past to care for family members or to look after the home, said Mr Evans. But there has also been a sharp rise in male inactivity. As well as the pandemic effect, there has 'been a rise in the number of young men inactive due to long-term sickness, particularly citing mental health conditions', Mr Evans said. Other government policies are not helping, with the rise in the minimum wage and the increase in employer National Insurance contributions (NICs) proving particularly painful for younger staff. The threshold at which employer NICs start to be paid was cut last month from a salary of £9,100 to just £5,000, meaning more low-paid and part-time workers' jobs have been dragged into the tax net. This harms employment prospects in industries including retail and hospitality, which often give youngsters their first positions. Sarah Yong, at the Youth Futures Foundation, said more youngsters are becoming stuck in unemployment. She said: 'Around one in four unemployed young people who are Neets have been looking for work for over a year, highlighting the persistent nature of this issue. 'Among this group, one in five lack any formal qualifications – double the rate seen across the wider youth population. 'Being out of work and education can have a scarring effect on young people even decades later, impacting their wellbeing, future prospects and much more. 'Aside from the moral imperative to act, there is a clear economic case: if we could put in sustained effort as the Netherlands have done and match their Neet rate, which is the lowest in the OECD, this would be worth £69bn to our economy and would mean approximately 500,000 more young people earning or learning.' Eight regions in the UK will receive £5m each for the 'trailblazer' jobs and training schemes, which will particularly focus on vulnerable youngsters. This includes those leaving care, of whom 40pc are not in education, employment or training. Ms Kendall said: 'Every young person should have the chance to thrive. Today's data shows progress, with 64,000 more young people earning or learning. However, there are still nearly 1m young people locked out of the system and being written off. 'I am determined to change that, which is why we are breaking down barriers to opportunity through our Plan for Change by investing £45m in our Youth Guarantee to give every young person the chance to get on in life.' Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
