There is increased concern about Britain’s growing number of unemployed young people with good cause;

Details released this week by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal the jobless figure for 16 to 24 year olds rose by 67,000 over the quarter to reach 1.02 million.

The ONS said: “The unemployment level and rate for people aged from 16 to 24 are the highest since directly comparable records began in 1992.”

The situation for young people is startling:

• Over 1 million young people between the ages of 16-24 are unemployed, many of them long term.
• Almost 28% of UK graduates who left University in 2007 are still unemployed.
• 40% of employers have cited poor literacy, numeracy and employability skills as reasons that they are recruiting fewer young people.

In the face of cuts, it is now critical that schools and educators do not decide that Careers and Employability Education are no longer essential and do even less for our young people.

It is clear that we must invest far more time and effort into giving school, college and even university leavers skills and training which enable them to access the job market and to be successful for themselves, their employers and their communities when they do find work.

Business Secretary Vince Cable announced today new measures to ensure more young people benefit from apprenticeships, and help employers gain the skilled workers they need to grow.  To encourage thousands of small firms that don’t currently recruit apprentices to take on a young apprentice aged 16 to 24, the Government now offers small employers an incentive payment of up to £1,500. The measures will support up to 20,000 new apprenticeships in 2012/13. However young people and their parents are still confused about employment options are and whether a degree is still the best option.

A new service provider

InspireEducation, part of Inspire2Exceed, has developed a number of Careers Education, Information and Guidance (IAG) support packages for schools and colleges.  The programmes are unique as they have been developed in partnership with employers.

The programmes enable schools to deliver the requirements expected by OFSTED, and pilots have inspired and motivated learners about their future and generated improved attainment in schools.

Inspire2Exceed does not currently receive any government funding and, as a social enterprise, will return 60% of its profits to supporting young people’s employment needs.

This story highlights that something better can be achieved despite cuts and during an economic downturn.

“We have worked, and will continue to work, with education and the world of business to develop programmes, which enable young people to do better at school and equip them to meet the requirements of business and industry.” Said Laura-Jane Rawlings, founder of InspireEducation.

The InspireEducation service is delivered by licenced partners to all education providers throughout the UK from the 18th of November and to celebrate its launch is running a Free Prize Draw for FREE IAG WORKSHOPS.

Schools, colleges or employers in Surrey looking to find out more about this important new programme should contact Peter Tate on 01483 604580 or visit www.i2e-education.co.uk.

Note to the editor

InspireEducation has been supporting schools and colleges in Northamptonshire with this programme since 2010.  Now through a network of licensed partners the InspireEducation programmes are available throughout the UK.  Peter Tate from Career Support Services is the contact for Surrey and Wokingham.

InspireEducation and Career Support Services also work with businesses to produce lesson plans and resources to bring the world of business into the classroom.  Business engagement is essential to inspire the changes that are needed to our education system and both these organisations are at the forefront of those changes. As well as employability skills schools and colleges will also be offered more resources on instilling business skills and promoting enterprise at the earliest ages.

For further information please contact Peter Tate, Career Support Services.

The InspireEducation programmes have been created to work closely with schools to deliver inspiring careers education with an emphasis on employability.  Participants are equipped and encouraged  become independent in managing their future careers.  In experiencing the engaging and fun workshops, students not only gain skills that make them more employable, but also find that their aspirations and motivation to succeed are raised.

The programmes, developed in conjunction with employers, help schools meet the requirements of OFSTED for careers education and have been very well received around the country. The organisation behind the employability programmes is a social enterprise, committed to delivering 60% of profits directly back to free careers programmes that will directly affect 14-19 year olds facing an uncertain future.

InspireEducation is very excited to be working with Peter Tate.  Peter has joined us as a licensed partner and brings to our team a depth of expertise that will add real value to our business and to the students he supports through CE/IAG delivery. Peter is passionate about the success of young people post education and has extensive knowledge in the subject of Careers and Education. Peter will be able to inspire, motivate and empower learners to take responsibility for their own futures.

Laura-Jane Rawlings, Managing Director of Inspire2Exceed

Education providers in Surrey and Wokingham are encouraged to speak to Peter Tate at Career Support Services to find out more about the programmes that are available and during the launch phase enter a competition to win freed sessions for their schools.  Establishments should click here to enter the competition and receive a 10% discount voucher just for entering.

Western society places a huge emphasis on the role of work when considering the identity and value of a person. Whilst we can see this easily from an anecdotal perspective, just look at the way in which we introduce one another; “Harry is a librarian …”, there is a strong argument that work also plays a central role in the development, expression and maintenance of our psychological wellbeing.

The current economic situation has left many new entrants to the workforce in a state of long term employment.  In the UK, we know that at the end of 2011 youth unemployment rates are staggeringly high.  21.9% of the 16-25 age group are currently unemployed and this figure is likely to rise over the next 12 months according to some analysts.

I believe that the situation in the UK is creating, if not a generation, then a significant group in society at huge risk.  The risk not merely from the psychological effects of unemployment, although these are bad enough, but more importantly at risk from a government policy that maintains the situation through spending cuts and the lack of thinking about the employability of our young people.

Careers Education and the independent information, advice and guidance services have been severely cut.  Now many could argue that the services such as Connexions left much to be desired, but what is left is an expectation that schools will fill the gap without real expertise or budget.

The days of the “careers interview” in schools may be far behind but the vacuum remains where young people have no idea about career options, routes to careers, how to get a job and most importantly, how to be employable.

If you look into the world of recruitment you will see that many adults struggle to project an employable image yet are thankfully redeemed by experience or personal connections, but young people leaving schools, colleges and even universities have even less idea of what it takes to join the world of work.  They have unrealistic expectations about many aspects of life and work and have often only the school experience of being prepared for examination results rather than real-world success.  A survey by the Chartered Management Institute indicated that employers encounter problems with discipline and punctuality (61%), workplace skills (63%) and attitude and ambition (66%).

Whilst schools must not be held solely accountable for this position, it is true to say that the results-driven nature of the education system has a clear impact; exam result league tables do net tell the story of what happens to young people as they enter the world of work.

We face a tragedy in the making, the creation of a significant proportion of the available workforce that is both demotivated and demoralised yet lacking the real skills necessary to change their circumstances.

Whilst we can’t change the economic climate easily, surely we should still better prepare our young people for the world of work; there are skills shortages and jobs available and our young people should be the most agile and versatile in society to react, but we aren’t preparing them with skills, attitude or the necessary resilience to cope with it.

This is why I have taken the step of becoming a licenced partner of InspireEducation to deliver skills training in areas of employability that both equips and motivates young people towards their future.  Are you inclined to do anything?

Peter Tate on BBC Radio Surrey