Young people in Swansea not in education, employment or training are being helped to get ‘work ready', as part of a scheme to help unemployed young adults gain work experience and confidence.

The programme, offered by BT, aims to give unemployed young people the skills and confidence to land their first jobs. The focus is on gaining essential digital skills, as well as practical work skills such as CV writing and interview techniques.

BT’s Work Ready programme is open to anyone aged 18 to 24 not currently in education, employment or training (NEET).

Three programmes have been held in Swansea this year, supporting 27 unemployed young people in the area. Across Wales, more than a hundred young people have attended the courses this year, with placements also being held in Cardiff and Merthyr Tydfil.

An event was held at Swansea’s BT Tower building to mark the end of the three-week BT Work Ready course for the five people who took part.

Deputy Leader of Swansea Council Councillor Andrea Lewis attended an event to present certificates to those completing the latest course in the city.

Nisha Bibi, 24, one of the young people from Swansea on the programme, said:

“This course has been really helpful in preparing me for a job. It helped me step into the work mind-set and grew my confidence.

“I gained a lot of insightful points on interview skills, communication and creativity. Our coach and other members of the team were always willing to help and give us great advice for improvement.”

Nick Speed, BT Group Director in Wales, who presented certificates alongside Councillor Andrea Lewis at the event, said:

“I’d like to say a huge congratulations to all these young people who have taken the first steps towards their future careers.

“Nothing can imitate a real working environment so that is exactly what this programme sets out to achieve. The workplace is changing and nearly all jobs in the future will require at least an element of digital skills, so it’s vital that we equip the next generation with the tools and knowledge they need to be able to thrive.”

Youth unemployment remains a challenge in Wales and in other parts of the UK. The youth unemployment rate in Wales was 12.6% – above the UK rate of 11.6% – according to latest figures (July 2018 to June 2019). The general unemployment rate for the population aged 16 and over in Wales was 4.2%, compared with 4.0% in the UK*.

In Wales, the proportion of 19-24 year olds that are NEET has been falling since the recession and now stands at just over 16 per cent.**

Since BT launched its Work Ready programme in 2014, around 3,000 young people have completed the scheme across the UK. More people took part than ever before during 2018 with 982 starting the programme and 77% of those completing it.