We keep hearing on the news about the ever-increasing rise in unemployment amongst our young people, with a truly staggering number of over 1 million young people now out of work.

Whilst the issue is complex, the outcome is simple – a generation being denied the opportunities previous generations enjoyed and absolutely took for granted. 

When my husband and I started our working lives, we both walked into schemes taking on school leavers.  I was one of nearly 100 school leavers taken on each year by Allied Dunbar – a big insurance employer in the town, now known as Zurich.  All you needed was your A-levels, and I walked into a full-time, well-paid & well-trained job.

Now my daughter is the same age, the opportunities for her are so tough.  She applied for an entry-level job in a Highstreet shop and was one of over 200 applicants for one vacancy.

This generation have already been through so much already – they were young, impressionable children when COVID hit, and had to live through the fear of that, and the premature loss of family members.  Add to that the lack of socialisation during those formative years, and the reduction in social-skills building school activities, it’s no wonder so many of them have struggled with their mental health.

The Government have committed to the Youth Guarantee – a scheme which will combine multiple agencies to try to join up support services, employment support and employers, with the aim to improve the outcome for young people.

I was privileged enough to join the Department of Work and Pensions last week, alongside many local agencies and partners, such as Seetec, Building Bridges, New College Swindon, Wiltshire College, Working Minds, Swindon Borough Council, CGL, National Careers Service and Enterprise Works.

As I listened to all the amazing people sat around the table, all discussing how we can work together better to improve outcomes for young people, what was clear was that everyone wants this to succeed, and there were so many kind, passionate, talented people working on the problem, so we have to make this work.

But whilst we can offer all the support, guidance and time into this scheme, we need the buy-in from not only young people who are willing to take an entry-level job but also employers who are willing to take a young person on and take the time to train them up.

We have a national skills shortage in so many roles, and a rising number of young people out of work, so if we can join these two elements together, we should be able to give this generation the opportunity to learn entry-level skills and get their careers started now.

What are we able to do?

As a training company, we can offer fully funded training to any young person over 19 years old.  We can train you on our Level 2 Warehouse and Forklift courses, with a view to getting you into a starting position in Logistics, Transport or Distribution sectors.

Click here for more information.

What can you do to help?

If you are an employer, then when you advertise for a new role, think about whether experience is actually essential.  You will have to provide on-the-job training to any new starter, so why not focus on the personality type and try to get a good match with your existing staff, rather than focusing on experience.  A keen, eager to learn staff member is going to be a plus to any business.

There is support now available to employers, from subsidies and incentives for hiring apprentices, to payments if you take hire some who has been out of work for over 6 months – check out the support and get involved at www.business.gov.uk/recruit

What can young people do?

If you are a young person, and you are offered an opportunity, then our advice is to grab it with both hands.  If someone takes a chance on you, then reward that effort by being a reliable, positive asset to their team.

Why this is good for us all

We all had a business or a person that took a chance on us for that first job, so if you can, try to remember that when your next vacancy comes around.  If you can, pay it forward. 

If everyone who is able to, plays their small part, then we will all benefit from a healthier economy, with reduced vacancies, reduced welfare bills, and an increased number of working people paying into the system.  

So let’s help give young people the same hope for a bright future that we had in any way we can.