Pictured above: Caring and sharing - Amanda Carr, assistant director adults social care (older people) at Coventry City Council, joins John McNicol, who is taking part in a Pertemps People Development Group employment project, during Carers Week

Young unemployed people inspired by hit BBC show The Apprentice have been touring Coventry to raise money for those less fortunate.

The group of 18 to 24-year-old budding entrepreneurs want to raise £1,000 for the Coventry Young Carers Project. They raised nearly £300 by setting up a stall selling cakes and flowers and are well on the way to hitting their target through other activities. Coventry employment experts Pertemps People Development Group (PPDG) has been providing advice and support to help them raise funds for the charity and gain skills that will help them secure jobs.

The group of 61 young people attending Work Focused Training came up with the fundraising idea themselves during a weekly job search session. They were then invited to join the Carers Week campaign and several volunteered to help a promotional bus tour, stopping at locations across Coventry, to increase support for carers.

Amanda Carr, assistant director adults social care (older people) at Coventry City Council, took part in the Carers Week campaign and was impressed by the attitude of the young people involved.

She said: "I spoke to a young man called John McNicol who had volunteered to help that day and who had been leading a fundraising project for young carers in Coventry in a bid to raise £1,000. John impressed me with his confidence, enthusiasm, passion and eloquence when talking about the work they have been doing at Pertemps, on one of their 13-week programmes, and the volunteering they are doing regarding young carers."

Inspired by Lord Alan Sugar and the young hopefuls taking part in The Junior Apprentice, the group believe they have what it takes to make a good profit which they will donate to the charity. They also believe the experience will provide them with the edge when applying for jobs at local companies and hope they'll hear Lord Sugar's famous catchphrase - You're hired!

PPDG was last year awarded the £8.3 million Work Focused Training contract to provide vocational training opportunities and employability skills to 18 to 24-year-olds. The move is part of the Backing Young Britain campaign, in partnership with the Future Jobs Fund and the Community Taskforce, which encourages organisations to provide young people with the opportunities they need to get into work. PPDG is delivering the contract from its sites in Birmingham and Solihull, West Bromwich and the Black Country, Coventry and Warwickshire, the Marches and Staffordshire.