Youth unemployment 'one of the biggest challenges'

As more and more young people struggle to find work, the founder of the Poundland chain has said many employers are struggling to recruit people with the right skills.

Steve Smith said he was passionate about young people finding work because it was "the start of your journey", but acknowledged the rise in many working-age people currently being out of work.

More than 92,000 people in the West Midlands aged between 16 and 24 are not in employment, education or training (Neets), latest figures show.

"Youth unemployment remains one of the biggest challenges facing our region and UK today," said the Wolverhampton-born businessman who now lives in Shropshire.

"I find the biggest cause is the disconnect between education and the labour.

"Many employers are struggling to recruit people with the right skills.

"Thousands of people are struggling to find meaningful employment and the important one for me is when you go for an interview, it's really important that these people get the feedback - why didn't they get the job, what do they need to change."

Nationally, data from the Office for National Statistics showed that about one in five people aged 16 to 64 are "economically inactive".

Many youngsters report applying for numerous jobs and either not hearing back or just getting to the interview stage.

The government has said it had introduced new policies under The Youth Guarantee package with the creation of 300,000 new work experience and training placements in sectors including construction, health and social care and hospitality.

Smith started on his father's market stall in Bilston before opening his first Poundland shop in 1990, and is now a tech investor after selling the business, based in Walsall, in 2006.

He said he wanted his current work with The School of Coding with Wolverhampton University to improve the opportunities for young people and train them to prepare for interviews and learn from feedback.

"We believe young people deserve the opportunity regardless of their background and the problem is not only for 16 to 24 year olds, the average age at the university at the moment is 37 so it's about long-life learning.

He added: "We need to make sure we give them the right skills and put the pathway to them to find that job."

For those wanting to start up their own business, Smith said said he wanted more support from the government in cutting red tape and business rates.

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