It is no secret that Gen Z, those aged 18-24, has been hardest hit with job losses during the Covid pandemic. According to the House of Lords Youth Unemployment Committee, today, 800,000 young people are not in work or full-time study. Moreover, 631,000 are not in any form of education, employment or training and 475,000 are unemployed; 141,000 for at least six months.
“Youth unemployment in the capital has soared by 55% to 105,000 since the start of the pandemic with more than 21% of young people jobless and seeking work.”
Youth unemployment in the capital has soared by 55% to 105,000 since the start of the pandemic with more than 21% of young people jobless and seeking work. According to the Princes Trust, the financial impact of youth unemployment could potentially cost the economy £10 billion in 2022 due to lost productivity, tax revenue and additional welfare costs. Perhaps worst of all, this negative impact can endure for years, doing untold damage to young people’s life chances and work prospects.
In a bid to halt this worrying trend, as part of the Government’s wider plan to offer this group more job opportunities, City Skills has launched a new style of Traineeship to offer young people a route into work and employers a source of future talent. We are on a mission to develop Skills in the City.
“Our new Traineeship model is a six-week programme that combines work-preparation training, a certificated vocational qualification, with 70 hours of quality work placement, all supported by the City Skills team.”
To help London employers with the costs of the work placement, the Government also offers a £1,000 bursary per trainee, up to £90,000 per organisation. This cash boost can be put towards wages, transport, uniforms, facilities or any other costs incurred by the business on behalf of the Trainee.
City Skills’ Traineeships include a Business Administration level 1 qualification along with space for more industry-specific training and can suit a range of sectors and industries; we have created them as collaborative programmes meaning we can tailor them to offer the very absolute best outcomes.
This year, we are working with candidates aged 19-24 who could have already had qualifications up to Level 3, which is equivalent to A levels. This means the calibre of candidates can be very high and with such a broad spectrum of skills currently in the jobs market, this opportunity of work experience can be the first step to retraining or trying out a new role that could lead to a wonderful new career.
“66% of trainees get a job, take up an apprenticeship or go on to further study within six months”
Government figures show that 66% of trainees get a job, take up an apprenticeship or go on to further study within six months of completing their programme and we hope that the additional funds available to employers will enable them to help expand the scheme even further, giving thousands more young people the opportunity to gain the skills they need to start a new career.
If you are wondering how a Traineeship programme could support your current or future plans, then get in touch and we can show you how you can access them and what the benefits could be for your business.