Pictured above: Kevin Hayes
The UK faces a major social and economic crisis unless more is
done to provide training and employment for young people of all
classes, a leading figure in Birmingham's Third Sector has
warned.
Kevin Hayes, chief executive of Enta, one of the city's oldest
social enterprise training organisations, said the shortage of jobs
threatened an increase in crime, growing despair - and even suicide
- among the young, from which not even the best educated youngsters
would be immune.
"It's now almost impossible to draw a distinction between a
16-year-old leaving school with no qualifications, and a
twenty-something with a first class degree from a good university,"
said Mr Hayes.
"There are some people out there who say these young people are
a waste of space. They're not. All they want is a job - the chance
to work, and an opportunity to earn some independence for
themselves, no matter what their background," he added.
Enta, a community interest company based at Mill Wharf,
Birmingham, has been working with the city's most vulnerable people
for more than 30 years. The organisation began as a training
provider but has grown and diversified to meet the needs of the
communities it serves.
"I know that a lot of youngsters are very depressed by what they
see in their future, and it wouldn't surprise me to see suicide
rates increasing in this age group," said Mr Hayes.
"The government obviously recognises the need for action, and
has made £1 billion available for apprentices for 16-25
year-olds, but we need to do much more.
"I have young graduates coming to me volunteering their
services, just for the chance to get some real workplace experience
- and they're prepared to undertake a 50 mile round trip at their
own expense to work for nothing."
The situation is equally bleak at the other end of the scale,
among the people with which Enta traditionally engages -
ex-offenders, disillusioned youngsters who left school with no
qualifications, or who quit early, and the long-term
unemployed.
However, Enta is determined to address the problem. It has
enjoyed significant success in the past year, recruiting more than
200 young people aged 16-18 - the highest number ever.
The organisation operates an 'open door' policy, accepting
learners on a 'no questions asked' basis from all backgrounds, even
those who have offended in the past.
More than 180 have stuck with the project and a further 84 have
been recruited since August - double the enrolment figures for
2009. The number of drop outs has also fallen dramatically.