Embargo: 00.01, Wednesday 22 January 2014

£10m scheme launched to help Young LONDONers into WORKas NEW study REVEALS capital’s 35,000 hidden Young unemployed

New research has revealed the extent to which young Londoners are struggling to find careers but a new £10m scheme from London Youth and the Big Lottery Fundpromises to help turn things around.

The study by the Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion (CESI) has found that almost35,000 young people aged 18-24 in London are completely outside of the benefits, work and training system[i],meaning they face severe barriers to gaining the skills they need to get onto the career ladder. In particular, young people with disabilities and childcare responsibilitiesexperience significant additional challenges in the hunt for jobs and training.

The study also showed that on average across London Boroughs up to 30 per cent of young people who are unemployed and outside of education have some form of disability[ii], and over a fifth have caring responsibilities[iii].

Now the Big Lottery Fund, the largest distributor of good causes money from The National Lottery, has awarded London Youth £9,944,800 to launchTalent Match London, aprogramme designed by young people which aims to create sustainable opportunities by supporting them into training, work and careers over the next five years. It is part of the Big Lottery Fund’s £100m, nationwide Talent Match programme which is focussing on 21 youth unemployment hotspots across the country.

Rosie Ferguson, Chief Executive of London Youth, who will be leading Talent Match London said: “The young people we work with across London consistently tell us that they want to learn new skills and have opportunities for fulfilling careers, but too often they struggle to find the right path. The shocking numbers revealed by the CESI study are yet more evidence of young people missing out.

“Talent Match London has been designed to provide not only the skills, but the confidence, resilience, networks, and the sustained backing that young people might need as they set out to navigate fulfilling career pathways. By providing one-to-one support to all young people on the programme, we believe Talent Match London will help more of them achieve meaningful and sustainable jobs and opportunities and help those facing the biggest barriers to overcome them.

“We really hope that by creating Talent Match London with young people and by involving employers from the start, we can secure opportunities for many young Londoners and leave a legacy that can support many more.”

Nat Sloane, England Chair of the Big Lottery Fund, said “Youth unemployment is an issue that threatens the hopes of an entire generation as well as our whole economic wellbeing. Talent Match promises to help the very hardest to reach young people to make the most of their skills and ambitions, not just as an end goal, but by giving them a say in how the programme itself is designed and put into practice.

“The funding announced today is a key step on a very exciting journey as it means the real work can now begin. By bringing together employers and the knowledge of key charities, Talent Match will help ensure today’s young people have the maximum help and support they need to find a fulfilling and rewarding career.”

London Youth has spent the past 18 months working with employers, training providers, local authorities, voluntary organisations and, most importantly, young people to design Talent Match London.Led by London Youth and delivered locally by a range of partners led by Community Links, Collage Arts, Hackney CVS, Gingerbread, The Prince’s Trust and 3SC.

ENDS

Notes to editors

Media enquiries

  • For interviews with Rosie Ferguson or some of the young people involved in Talent Match London please contact London Youth: 020 7549 8800 or 07736 619 606 (Shivangee Patel) / 07736 619 596 (Jim Minton)
  • For any media enquiries about the analysis or findings, please contact Tony Wilson, Policy DirectorCentre for Economic and Social Inclusion: 020 7840 8346 / 07504 054407
  • A full copy of the report can be requested on 020 7549 8800 or at

Big Lottery Fund Press Office: 020 7211 1888

Out of hours media contact: 07867 500 572

If you have a hearing or speech impairment you can contact us using Text Relay at

18001 plus 0191 376 1776

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  • The Big Lottery Fund, the largest distributor of National Lottery good cause funding, is responsible for giving out 40% of the money raised for good causes by the National Lottery.
  • The Fund is committed to bringing real improvements to communities and the lives of people most in need and has been rolling out grants to health, education, environment and charitable causes across the UK. Since its inception in 2004 BIG has awarded close to £6bn.
  • The Fund was formally established by Parliament on 1 December 2006.
  • In the year ending 31 March 2013, 28% of total National Lottery revenue was returned to the Good Causes.
  • Since the National Lottery began in 1994, 0£31 billion has been raised and more than 400,000 grants awarded across arts, sport, heritage, charities, health, education and the environment.

London Youth is a network of over 400 diverse community youth organisations in neighbourhoods across the capital. The charity delivers programmes with and through this network in every London borough and out of town at its two residential learning centres, creating pathways for young people to learn in a range of settings through sports development, social youth action, outdoor education, employability and inclusion. Its mission is to support and challenge young people to become the best they can be. London Youth are co-creators of the project and the lead partner responsible for the overall management, monitoring and co-ordination and delivery of the project, as well as all matters related to the involvement of young people, from initial engagement and recruitment to on-going support onsite and into development opportunities.

Ends//

Issued:

PN 14-01-20

[i] There are 114,000 under 25s not in employment, education or training in London but only 79,690 claiming any out-of-work benefit – this leaves approximately 34,600 under 25 NEET and not claiming. Source: Nomis, Benefit Claimants aged under 25, May 2013 (There will be a negligible number receiving benefits aged below 18 so this has been interpreted as an 18-24 figure); #NEET statistics, DfE, Q2 2013

[ii] 36.3% of benefit claimants under 25 in Merton and 32.5% in Greenwich are classified as disabled putting both boroughs above the London average (31.2%). Source: Nomis, Sum of recipients in disabled and ESA/Incapacity Benefit stat groups, May 2013

[iii] Of those on benefits aged under 25 in London 22.4% having caring responsibilities(3.1% are classified as carers and 19.3% are lone parents). Source: Nomis, May 2013