1. 1

2. 2
CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS…………………………………PAGE 3
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY………………………………….PAGE 4
INTRODUCTION…………………………………………..PAGE 5
2. WHAT WE DID………………………………………….PAGE 6
2.1 RESEARCH DESIGN…………………………………PAGE 6
2.2 ETHICAL CONSIDERATIONS……………………….PAGE 6
2.3 METHOD…………………………………………….....PAGE 7
2.4 DATA ANALYSIS………………………………………PAGE 7
3. WHAT WE FOUND…..…………………………………PAGE 8
3.1 RETENTION RATE……………………………………PAGE 8
3.2 SOFT SKILLS…………………………………………..PAGE 9
3.3 CAN THEY IDENITFY SKILLS?.............................PAGE 10
3.4 IMPROVED INTERVIEW SKILLS………………….PAGE 10
3.5 POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES OF YOUNG CARER…...PAGE 10
3.6 EDUCATION, TRAINING, EMPLOYMENT…….….PAGE 11
CASE STUDIES…………………………………………..PAGE 12
CONCLUSIONS…………………………………………..PAGE 13
RECOMMENDATIONS…………………………………..PAGE 15
BIBLIOGRAPHY…………………………………………..PAGE 18

3. 3
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We’dlike to thankYouth Focus North East for theircontributionto thisresearch project;
Neil Burke, in particular, was invaluable in his contributionto theproject and providing
group support.
We’dalso like to thankAntony Lea from Carers Trust Northumberland for help in providing
theyoung carers used in thisresearch.
We are also thankful to Prof. Derek Belland Dr. Judy Murray for their invaluableassistance,
guidance and feedbackthroughout ourresearch.
Finallywe would liketo thank alltheyoung carers for their participationinthisresearch
project.

4. 4
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Youngpeople acrossthe countryare facingsocial injustice throughtheir higher levels of
unemployment. When unemployed,a personis muchmore likely to have a lower quality of life and
youngpeople struggle to ‘get their footin the door’ becausethey usually lack the skills employers
require forthem to be productive.This is nomore apparent thanwhen these youngpeople have also
been full time carers duringtheir time in education.
We argue that throughinformal youthled pre-employability schemes,youngpeople can get more
prepared forthe work place throughlearning the soft skills employers want to see in potential
candidates and througha widerrollout of schemes like these, we canbridge the gap between schools
and workthat will enable youngpeople whostruggleto find their place in the worldafter schoolis
finished to move into furthereducation,employment or training. This is of interest to not only these
youngpeople and their potential employers butthe state, throughbothan increase in taxation as
well as a reducedburdenon the welfare state, can only benefit by getting these youngpeople into
workas well.
Ourresearch, whichexamined the pre-employability scheme ReducingtheSkillsGap,launchedbythe
charity Youth Focus North Eastwhousea youth led informal approachto address this problem, shows
that they do crucialand valuable workin the region. This report will make clear that a scheme like
ReducingtheSkillsGap shouldbe applied acrossthe countryandbe offered notonly to youngcarers
ofother regions of the UKbut all youngpeople whocome outof secondaryeducationbecoming
NEETs¹.
KEY POINTS:
 The Reducingthe SkillsGap schemehas been effective in getting youngcarerswhowere
strugglingwith finding jobsafter their secondaryeducation had finished.
 Its uniqueapproachto teachingsoft skills has been praised not only by the youngcarers
themselves butalso the employers whotook part in the scheme.
 Use ReducingtheSkillsGap as a model for creatingpre-employability schemes designed for
youngpeople to transition into the workplace.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
Fromour research,we have identified five key areas that we believe need are necessary to have a
successfulpre-employment scheme, they are briefly outlined here:

5. 5
 Pre-employabilitytrainingschemeshavetoequip participantswiththenecessaryskillsfor
employment
 Pre-employabilitytrainingschemesneedtobe flexibleand targeted totheparticipantsneeds
 Young peoplepreferyouthled
 No classroomsetting,informal settingspreferred
 Fun and engagingto retainparticipants
INTRODUCTION
Ourreport investigated youth-led,informal, grassroots pre-employment training schemesin
relation to unemployed youngcarers.Youngpeople throughouttheUK are facing multiple barriers
to employment suchaslack of experience, lack ofqualifications and perceptionsof youngworkers
by employers. This hasresulted in uncharacteristically highlevels of unemployment among 16-25
year olds in Britain. Asa groupyoungcarersare facedwith even more barriers to employment such
as extra responsibility and uncertaintyare whentheir caring role will demand their time.
This report details ourassessment ofa pre-employment training scheme Reducingthe SkillsGap
designed foryoungcarers, as a way to create a template fora successfulpre-employmenttraining
schemes.
We firstly detail the methods weused to assess the scheme runby Youth Focus NorthEast,a
Gateshead based charity. We then present our findingsand show in whatways ReducingtheSkills
Gap wasa success.Finally, we concludewhatthis means forYouth Focus NorthEastand detail what
recommendations wewere able to make as a result ofour research.

6. 6
2. WHAT WE DID
2.1 RESEARCH DESIGN
The objective of ourresearch was tobe able
to measure the success,withmultiple
determinants of success,ofthe Reducingthe
SkillsGap pre-employment training scheme.
It wasimportant to considerthe type of
research to usefrom the beginning ofthe
project,knowingthat the research type can
impact the quality and validity of the data
collection. Given the nature of the question
and data we were able to utilise, qualitative
research wasthe most appropriate type of
research, andit allows a greater insight into
the question andparticipants². Moreover,the
question ofsuccessis contestedand difficult
to measure, and qualitative data wouldallow
a multifaceted wayof assessing it.
When developing the research design it was
essential to be sure that the findings of the
research wouldhelp to best answerthe
question.Firstly weresearched through
academic literature to see whether the
question hadbeen answered before. There
were multiple journalarticles offeringadvice
and evaluating certain pre-employment
schemes, butno journalcouldbe seen to
provide any clear-cutanswersto suggest the
most effective pre-employment scheme².
More significantly, though,is that there was
noresearch to be foundlooking at the
employment barriers forYoungCarers and
evaluating schemes designed for them.
Furthermore,there did not seem to be any
comparative research analysis exploring
informal and formal training schemes, or any
worksuggesting how best to measure the
successofa training scheme. There was also
noacknowledgement that one participant
might have founda jobafter a scheme, but
they might have foundone anyway,while
another might not have foundajob at the
end of the scheme but they might have
increased certain skills, suchas
communication,whichwill arguably have a
greater long term impact ontheir career
progression,even if they are unable to finda
jobimmediately. Therefore, it’s difficultto
argue in this case that the participant who
founda jobwasmore successfulthatthe
participant whodid not, butimproved their
coreemployability skills.
2.2 ETHICAL
CONSIDERATIONS
Before conductingtheresearch,ethical
considerations werenecessary to explore and
ourconsiderations had tobe agreed by the
Newcastle University ethics department
before wecould participate in the research.
The participants were aged 16-25year old, so
did not need to signparental consentforms,
butwere provided with information sheets
and consentformsto sign, before
participating. The research wasconfidential
and participants were anonymised -not only

7. 7
forethical reasons, butbecause it allowed
greater freedom for the participants to be
more open andhonest about the pre-
employment training scheme, knowingthere
wouldbe no repercussions.
2.3 METHOD
To evaluate the scheme, weinterviewed
several participants. The interviews were
designed to be in-depth and toexplore the
perceptionsand accountsofthe participants.
The sample size was small at justseven, but
that was all that wasavailable to us,and it did
not matter so muchbecausewe were using
qualitative data³. We were assigned with
participants whohad completed the scheme
and were able to attend an interview. All
participants were invited so that we could
ensure ourresearch of the scheme was fair
and noparticipant’s voice was ignored.We
used purposivesampling methods, making
sure that weinvited participants that we
thoughtcouldcontributeto the research
projectand generate relevant data. We
understandthat the participants are not
statistically significantand therefore might
be bias, but the essential point is that all
interviewees were youngcarerswhohad
completed the YouthFocuspre-employment
training scheme.
To obtain the data to answer ourresearch
question,we conductedindividual interviews
with seven participants of the Youth Focus
NorthEastpre-employment scheme.
Individual interviews canprovide greater
depth ofcontentas they enable participants
to open-upmore, as the interviews are more
personal; the interviews were catered
towardsfinding outthe experience of the
individual, rather thanthe general
experience. We interviewed at the Youth
Focus North Eastofficesas all ofthe
participants were comfortablethere andwere
used tothe setting. The questionswere
designed to answerthree main points:
Informationabout the participants before
they took part in the scheme (skills,
employment history, whythey participated
etc…),their overall experience of the Youth
Focus scheme, and the longer-term impact of
the scheme. The questions weredesigned to
answerwhether the scheme had been
successfulinincreasing the skills of its
participants and helping them to gain
employment. Observational techniqueswere
used toassess the general attitude and
enthusiasm of the participants,and to look
forcues.
2.4 DATA ANALYSIS
Aftercollecting the data, we were able to
identity certain themes from the research,
suchas the commonidea that the scheme
improved the interviews skills of the
participants. Anexcel file wascreated to
display the answersto important questions
ona spreadsheet, foreasy comparison
between participants. Eachinterview was

8. 8
fully analysed andseparately annotated on a
worddocument.The interview answers were
codedaccordingto the three main points
listed above, anddivided into topicswhich
best answer specific questionse.g. overall
experience of the scheme.We comparedthe
interviews using a thematic comparative
analysis, butalso looked forsimilarities more
generally and, importantly, analysed
differencesin answersto questions.After
making basic comparisonsand breaking the
analysis into categories, wedisplayed some
ofthe informationvisually, forease of
comparisone.g. a tally chartto show whether
the participants gained employed or not.We
used a narrative analysis, too,to gather an
impression of the general ‘story’ of each
participant, rather than removing the context
by simply copyingand pasting. To ensure the
validity of the researchwas strengthened, we
maintained comprehensive recordsof the
interviews and groupdiscussionprocess.It
was important toremain as rigorousas
possible and not assume conclusionswithout
fully analysing the data.
3. WHAT WE FOUND
Asmentioned previouslyin orderto answer
ourresearch question weevaluated the
successof ReducingtheSkillsGap as a wayto
draw up a list ofrecommendations and
suggestionsfor futurepre-employment
schemes.
The main aim of ReducingtheSkillsGap is to
provide youngpeople with the ability to
recognise andprove they possess the skills
necessary foremployment; in effectclosing
the skills gap between unemployment and
securinga job.Therefore, we believe the best
way toevaluate their successwasby the
followingfactors:
 The retention rate ofthe scheme
 Marked improvement in softskills –
time management, professionalism,
confidence,teamwork
 Whether the participants are able to
recognizethese skills
 ImprovedInterview Skills
 Greater understanding ofthe positive
attributes of being a youngcarer
 Whether the participants are now in
furthertraining, education or
employment
3.1 THE RETENTION RATE
OF THE SCHEME
Inorder to assess the most basic level of
successofthis pre-employment training
scheme we decided tolook at its retention
rate. Unlike many schemes attended by those
seeking work,ReducingtheSkillsGap is
voluntary andindependent of the jobcentre
meaning that the participantscan leave the
scheme at any time withoutthe risk ofhaving
benefits sanctioned. YouthFocusNorthEast
wanted their scheme to be voluntaryas they

9. 9
hoped the informal nature ofthe scheme
wouldhelp the youngcarers engage with the
scheme and therefore stick it outuntil the
end. Itwouldseem that this design for a pre-
employment training scheme worked as of
the seven youngcarers weinterviewed all of
them stayed until the end ofthe scheme.
All seven ofthe interview candidates said
they enjoyed the scheme andit wasflexible
aroundtheir caringresponsibilities; even
whenone ofthe candidates struggledwith
her caringrole onthe three day residential,
Neil (the scheme leader) helped her persevere
and finish the scheme. Fromthis we conclude
the successfulretention ofall the participants
was downtothe flexible, informal nature of
the scheme and the high satisfactionwith the
activities.
3.2 MARKED IMPROVEMENT
IN SOFT SKILLS
The secondway we decidedto measure
successforourreport wasby looking at the
skills the participants believed they had
gained or improved during Reducingthe Skills
Gap.ReducingtheSkillsGap,asis apparent
from the name, aims to reduce the skills gap
in youngpeople. Prior tothe schemethe
seven youngcarers weinterviewed all said
they wanted to improve on workrelated
skills.
Afterthe scheme all agreed it had allowed
them to build on the skills they wanted, the
majority had real practiceof interviews for
the first time and all believed they had
improved ontheir communication,
professionalism in the workplace and were
able to manage their time better as a result of
the scheme.
Therefore, forthe seven participants we
interviewed Reducing theSkillsGap
succeededas they left the scheme with
improved communication,time
management, professionalism, confidence
and team work skills.
‘With the reducing the skills gap course, we had
more control over the programme. There were many
fun activities that helped and finding out …which
skills we excelled in or needed to improve. We were
always on our feet and moving - that helped me to
work more effectively as it made sure I was never
static and bored.’ (Female,18)

10. 10
3.3 CAN THEY IDENTIFY
THEIR SKILLS?
The third factorin measuring the successof
ReducingtheSkillsGap is whetherthe
participants were able to identify and prove
their skills uponleaving. Ifparticipants were
able to identify their skills andtalk about
them in interviews, backingthem up with
examples then ReducingtheSkillsGap would
have succeeded.
There was a unanimousfeeling amongall the
interview candidates that they left the
scheme able tofully identify all their skills;
both strongskills and the weak ones they
needed to build on. Infact,six outof seven of
the candidates we interviewed said Reducing
theSkillsGap meant they were able to talk
aboutthe positive skills gained from being
youngcarers in jobinterviews.
3.4 IMPROVED INTERVIEW
SKILLS
ForReducingthe SkillsGap tohave succeeded
as a pre-employment training scheme it
shouldhave prepared it’s participants for
employment, anda key part ofthis
preparation was interview practice.The
scheme gave all the youngcarersthe
opportunityofa practiceinterview with law
firm Ward Hadaway in orderto make them
comfortable in an interview setting.
Infact,out ofthe seven youngcarers in our
studysix of them said they hadapplied the
things learnt in this interview practicein
subsequentinterviews for work,
apprenticeships anduniversity. As a result of
these interview practiceswe were able to
observe that all 7 of the candidates were at
ease in ourinterviews and able to talk fully
aboutthe scheme withconfidence.
3.5 GREATER
UNDERSTANDING OF THE
POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES OF
BEING A YOUNG CARER
Muchof the existing literature onyoung
carers focusesonthe issues surrounding
perceptionsof the role, by both employers
and the youngcarersthemselves. We found
that before ReducingtheSkillsGap ourseven
interviewees lacked confidenceandoften
undervaluedtheir roles. With many
‘RTSG has definitely helped us to brag about them
[skills] without just going ‘Ican do this, I can do
that’ because when you’re getting taught those
skills you’re also told how to prove you’ve got them,
not just say that you’ve got them.’ (Female, 17)
‘I am more able to speak properly and formally in an
interview setting, and can prepare well before an
interview, making sure that I present all my
attributes and experiences to employers.’ (Female,
20)

11. 11
neglecting to mention it in job interviews, and
if they did mention it they were often shot
downand told the jobprobably didn’t suit
them. The flexible nature of Reducingthe
SkillsGap meansit is able to adapt its scheme
to its participants. The result of this forthe
youngcarers wasthat the scheme focussed
ongetting them to recognisethe softskills
they have attained fromcaring, suchas;time
management, communication,empathy and
patience.
The successofthis focuscanclearly be seen
among ourinterview candidates as five of
them had examples ofwhere they had
applied this greater understandingof the
positive attributes ofbeing a youngcarer in
real life setting. These examples ranged from
university interviews for nursingto making
employers aware ofhow their caring role has
prepared them to workwith youngpeople in
a school.
3.6 FURTHER EDUCATION,
TRAINING OR
EMPLOYMENT
A furtherobvious marker of successofa pre-
employment training scheme is whether its
participants have left the scheme and gone
ontofurther education,training or have
securedemployment.
Of the seven youngcarers we interviewed all
have foundemployment, with one hopingto
studyat university and onenow in an
engineering apprenticeship. Fromthis we can
concludethat in its most stripped back form
as a pre-employment training scheme
ReducingtheSkillsGap hasbeen successful.
‘I was able to talk about young carers and what I’ve
done and I wasn’t judged. They just wanted you to
explain it and how that made me who I am now in
the way I comeacross.’ (Female,18)

12. 12
CASE STUDY- ZARA, 18
Zara took part in ReducingtheSkillsGap ina bid to
gain employment butalso a wayto increase her
confidence.
‘My confidencewasvery low and Ifelt that whatI
was doing[caring] wasuseless -I had to be there for
my nana. I was lacking in confidenceandI didn't
know what aninterview wouldbe like - how it would
be structured.’
What she foundonher first day and throughouther
ReducingtheSkillsGap experience wasa friendly,
supportiveenvironment.
‘It wasvery comfortable and Iknew straight away
that it wasa safe environment.’
Throughouthertime on the scheme Zara wasable
to finally start valuing her caringrole.
‘The scheme focusedonmy caring role and I was
able to understandthe positive attributes ofmy
caringduties. I saw that, sometimes, I had a
comparative advantage over other people whoare
not carers.’
Like the otheryoungcarers we spoke toZara built
coreskills necessaryfor employment. Zara has since
been able to apply these skills in real life.
‘My organisational, communicationandteamwork
skills have improved. I am an apprentice at a big
welding firm. I have to understanddifferent forms of
communication.I have to interact with customerson
the shopfloor [and]I mustalso speak with head
officeand with my observer.I have to workas a
team to comeup withsolutions and increase
efficiencyon the job.’
With her new foundconfidenceZarasecuredan
interview and now worksas an apprentice at an
engineering firm.
CASE STUDY- SOPHIE, 17
Before her time withReducingthe SkillsGap
Sophie had not applied for anywork as she felt
being a youngcarer wouldmake it in impossible.
‘I did the coursebecauseof me being a young
carer, I didn’t feel like they wouldbe able to
balance my time. Becausesometimes I’d have to
rushhome half way throughmy shift.’
Doing ReducingtheSkillsGap schemeenabled
Sophie to build skills suchas confidenceand
professionalism.
‘Where I worknow it’s a bakery so I have tohave
nice displays and things andI [was]constantly
goingoh is this display alright? Isthis good
enough?Andnow I’m justgoing it looks good
I’m happywith it, so I think definitely my
confidencehas really boostedsince doing the
course.’
Sophie has been able to usethe skills she learned
onthe scheme tosecure a university interview.
‘We’d do interview practice whichhas helped
whenI’m doing my uni interviews. I’m doing
nursing.Quite a lot of the things like
professionalism, communication,time
management they all have to dowith nursing.
So the practiceof doingthem withRTSG has
then helped me to putthem forwardin the
interview.’
Sophie thoroughlyenjoyed ReducingtheSkills
Gap,andfoundthe youthled element
particularly engaging.
‘It wasfun.It wasn’tjustlike being in school,like
I mentioned before, he [Neil] made it as funas
he possibly couldand it was designed by young
people so it appealed to youngpeople.’
Since completing ReducingtheSkillsGap Sophie
had her workexperience position made into a
part time job.Sophie is also hopingto study
nursingat university in September 2016.

13. 13
CONCLUSIONS
It has been made clear throughoutthis researchthat Youth Focus NorthEasthas been successfulin
its scheme of providingyoungcarers withmuchbetter prospects.We have shownthey have done
this throughenabling a better understandingofthe positive attributes of a caringrole and
improving softskills, all participants we interviewed said that beforethe schemethey were
strugglingwith finding a jobbecausethey were unable toshow the skills they had obtained
throughbeing carersand lacked the softskills many employers are looking for whenit came to
interacting with them duringthe application processas well as good workpractices.One
participant in particular wasseeking welfare despite being in educationpreviously:
‘I went intofurther education,but found myselfunemployedafterwards,but I wasfed up
being unemployedsojust wantedto try out any work experience scheme.It hasbeen very
tough finding work.’ (Male, 24)
Youth Focus North Easthas providedsocial justice tothese youngcarersand sees Reducing the
SkillsGap aspart of the solutionto the nationwide problem ofyouth.Inorder for it to achieve this,
a greater awarenessfor this type of informal youthled schemeand its effectivenessis required so
that this method of teachingcan be usedby both NGOslike Youth Focus NorthEastand by the
state in schoolsandcolleges. While the workthat Youth Focus North Easthas donewith Reducing
theSkillsGap may notbe wholly addressing the issues of youthunemployment, (a lack ofjobswas
also a problem raised by the participants) this shoulddefinitely be seen as an important part of the
solution.
‘The activities,standingupin front of lotsof people and presenting,my confidence was
boosted and it has helpedme to enjoy work a little more,because I’mmore comfortable with
speakingto customersandI’mable to act ina more professional manner.’ (Male, 24)
Schemes like Reducingthe SkillsGap providea chancetoincrease the quality oflife of young
people, the youngcarers particularly had a lot to gain from taking part. However,participants had a
perception (somehad concludedthroughtheirexperiences withemployers directly) that
employers wereunresponsive andhesitant to take these youngpeople on becausethey considered
the youngcarers to be a likely burden becauseof their caringcommitments:
WHAT YOUTH FOCUS NORTH EAST IS DOING

14. 14
‘Before I startedthe course,I struggled when applyingforapprenticeships.In interviews,
trainingproviders suggested that I’dstruggled because Iwas a carerandit would be a burden
on employers.’ (Female,18)
This is somethingthat YouthFocuswillbe unable to tackle onits ownandthis will require wider
supportfrombusinesses and government in orderto defeat these stigmas.
Inaddition, as wehave shownearlier, the longer youngpeople remain in unemployment the harder
it is forthem to get a job becauseof the deficit they build in experience of work,this causesa larger
strain on the state throughwelfare and other costsassociated with people being in long term
unemployment. This is particularly prevalent in the North East of England as wehave shown,
ignoring this problem therefore, will also lead to nationwide inequality.
‘Do youhave any advicefor otherschemes?
They needto be more fun. The scheme wasvery progressive and I couldsee my own
improvement eachsession- otherschemesshould follow this. Most other schemes,fromwhat
I’ve heard, are more complexbut not necessarily more effective.’ (Male,24)
Ifnot incorporating ReducingtheSkillsGap inits entirety, the governmentwoulddo well to use
ReducingtheSkillsGap as a model (as shownbythe quote above) forany other pre-employability
scheme foryoungpeople, and its practices shouldbe replicated acrossall organisations that also
aim to get youngpeople into employment orfurther education.Asyouthunemployment remains
stubbornlyhigh¹,there is a need for greater integration of youngpeople into the employment
sector,as well as employment support,bothofwhichhave been reduced as part ofthe current
government’s austerity plan. Many employers have stated that youngpeople comingoutof schools
lack the necessary softskills in orderto obtain and then maintain a job,the youngcarers in this
investigation in particular seemed to have picked them up throughtheir experiences as young
carers butwere not sureabout how to show them in an interview. Organisations like Youth Focus
NorthEastsee themselves as part ofthe solution, and byputting being funand engagingfor young
people at the heart ofwhat they do showsweshould notunderestimate the impact they have in
bringing people outof being NEET.
We, therefore, argue that in order to bridge the gapbetween schools andemployers proactive
schemes like ReducingtheSkillsGap shouldbe implemented at a greater level. This couldbe done
with help fromYouth Focus NorthEast.Inaddition wealso foundoutduringthe research that local
employers need to be active in taking part in the scheme, throughholding formal exercises like
interviews and providingwork experience, this may be considered a limitation ofthe scheme due to

15. 15
its requirement forexternal cooperation.Butwe believe if employers are shownthe potential
benefits of the scheme forthem, suchas the ability to hire candidates that actually have the skills
they are looking for,then the scheme canovercomethe difficulties ofsecuringexternal
cooperation.
KEY POINT: Inorder to reduce youth unemployment, informal youth led pre-employability training
schemes like Reducing the Skills Gap should be implemented on a wider scale
RECOMMENDATIONS: Use Reducing the Skills Gap as a model, slowly implement pre-employability
schemes across the country with the help of local employers bridging the gap between schools and
employers
Ashighlighted bya numberofthe youngcarers Reducingthe SkillsGap wassuitedparticularly to
their caring needs with the organisers being proactiveand adapting their teachingto the carers
availability and skills they already had. We have seen that Youth Focus NorthEastdo some very
important and valuable workin the region. However,greater social justiceforyoungpeople will
only be achieved whenthe services provided by organisations suchas Youth Focus NorthEastare
nolonger provided by charities but by the state. Forthis to happen, wemust focusonensuringpre-
employability training is a key part ofthe national curriculuminBritish schools.
While focusingonmeasuring the scale ofneed for furtherservices fromYouth Focus NorthEast,
some other important questions relating to achieving better youthemployment rates acrossthe
country,especially in the North East remain unanswered.Hence, furtherresearch tocreate a
deeper understandingof the issue in relation to the United Kingdom and especially the North East
is required.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Fromour research,we have identified fourkey areas that webelieve need are necessary to create a
successfulpre-employment scheme:
 Pre-employabilitytrainingschemeshavetoequip participantswiththenecessaryskillsfor
employment–employers need to be consultedspecifically on whatthey are looking forin
potential candidates whenit comes to softskills and these need to be directly implemented
into any pre-employment schemeso that successfulparticipantsof the scheme cango to
RECOMMENDATIONS TO THE GOVERNMENT

16. 16
employers andshow them exactly whatthey are looking foroutside offormal
qualifications.
 Pre-employabilitytrainingschemesneedtobeflexibleand targeted totheparticipantsneeds
– This scheme in particular showedhow important it is forretention rates that pre-
employability schemes need to adapt to changesthat take place duringa participant’s time
onthe scheme.A successfulschemecannotbe rigid to the point that certain sessions are
strictly time tabled and there are negative consequencesformissing them.
 Young peoplepreferyouthled schemes -Allofthe carers,when asked, said that they greatly
preferred that it was a youngpersonleading the scheme and spearheading the learning, as
they felt that there was a better workingrelationship between teacher and pupil.
 No classroomsetting-What also seemed important forthe youngcarers in this studyis that
the general setting was informal withgroupbased activities teaching them soft skills and
then having the youngcarersreflect on them in an exercise afterwards, throughthis
different approachrather than a more traditional classroom setting youngerparticipants
especially seem muchmore likely to engage and do notconsider it to be an extension of
school
 Fun and engagingto retainparticipants -Lastly,to furtherincrease engagement, it is highly
recommended that any pre-employability schemefor youngpeople shouldbe funin the
activities they do as well as the experience as a whole,in order to ensure participants want
to keep coming backand continuethe learning process,this will ensure a high numberof
participants complete the scheme and goon to get apprenticeships, jobsorcontinueinto
furthereducation.
The government is responsible for implementing the long term changes.Meanwhile, Youth
Focusesworkcanhelp continueproviding youthpeople with the necessary skills to advertise
themselves properly to employers.
 Continue providing youngcarerswith pre-employability training, ensuringevery youngcarer
whoparticipates in the scheme is successful infinding a jobor goinginto furthereducation
RECOMMENDATIONS TO YOUTH FOCUS NORTH EAST

17. 17
 Keep building links between employers and youngpeople to ensure greater synchronicity
between whatemployers are looking for and how potential candidates can best demonstrate
those qualities to those employers
 Work withthe governmentin rolling outthe scheme to other places so the wider problem of
youthunemployment can be tackled everywhere in the country

18. 18
BIBLIOGRAPHY
¹ ‘‘NEET’ stands for young people aged 16-24 Not in Education, Employment or Training
(NEET). A person identified as NEET is either unemployed or economically inactive and is
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