St Helens to help young people into jobs

Aug 19 2009 Liverpool Daily Post

MORE than 100 young people in St Helens are being helped into jobs as part of a new programme.

St Helens Chamber and St Helens Council have teamed up to employ talented graduates and school leavers, who will be placed at local businesses and organisations across the borough.

Graduates who have completed a degree and are returning to St Helens to work, and school leavers aged from 16 to 19, will benefit from the initiative.

School leavers will be taken on 12-month contracts, paid £95 per week, and will begin NVQ training with the chamber prior to starting a formal apprenticeship programme.

They will be trained and supported by the Chamber free of charge.

Brian Spencer, leader of St Helens Council, said: “Graduates are, by definition, well- educated. But they may need employability and vocational skills such as IT and job search assistance and, most importantly, some kind of placement.

“School leavers have traditionally gone into work either through apprenticeships or into jobs without formal training which are, at the moment, limited. “The benefits of engaging this group of young people in meaningful training and employment are fairly obvious. It provides a better local workforce.”