London Youth Secures £300,000 in Future Jobs Fund First Round to Provide Jobs and Training to Disadvantaged Young People

London Youth has been awarded ₤299,500 in the Future Jobs Fund’s first round of applications to provide jobs and training in youth work for 50 disadvantaged young people.  

Over a 6 month job placement, which pays the London Living Wage, the young people will receive comprehensive training in core transferable skills and earn a Level One ‘Foundation in Youth Work’ qualification. These placements will be tailored to each individual young person in order to match their individual needs, skill sets and aptitude.  

The project will take place across a number of London boroughs focused on those with the greatest need for youth employment including Lewisham, Greenwich, Lambeth, Tower Hamlets and Hackney.

The money will add capacity to London Youth’s groundbreaking Positive Change programme which provides alternative pathways for 1,000 young people involved in gang culture, re-engaging them with education, training and employment.  

Commenting on the news, London Youth’s Chief Executive Nick Wilkie said –  

"The UK has the highest youth jobless rate in Europe and there is a real risk that this will become a lost generation.   

“We need to be channelling more resources towards high quality youth work which has a proven track record of re-engaging marginalized young people with education, training and employment. 

“Schemes like these are most likely to have a long term positive impact when they work through locally-led, grass-roots community youth clubs and projects.

“These organisations have long-established links to the heart of their local area which gives them an unrivalled ability to reach people on the fringes of society and tackle youth unemployment. 

“For the young people taking part, this will be a rewarding and challenging experience that will provide them with the confidence and skills necessary to make the most of their lives.  

“Once trained, they will be ideally placed to connect and engage with other young people from their area who are facing employment or educational barriers.”