Town has fewest jobs for young in UK, report finds

Rotherham has the fewest suitable entry-level jobs for young people in Britain, according to a new report.

The findings, published by the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR), said the town had 46 online vacancies for every 1,000 young people, while the Cotswold district council area, for example, had 288.

South Yorkshire Mayor Oliver Coppard said it was a "shocking statistic".

He said that while the region's councils were doing "lots for young people", including free travel on public transport, "it will never be enough until the economic picture turns round".

The analysis, called the Local Youth Opportunity Index, looked at how many suitable jobs were available for every 1,000 young people aged 18-24 in an area.

The IPPR argued that the findings showed youth unemployment was not primarily about qualifications or willingness, but rather about a lack of job opportunities.

The same report ranked Sheffield as the 10th worst area for suitable entry-level jobs for young people.

Speaking on BBC Radio Sheffield's Call Coppard phone-in, the mayor said: "Young people in South Yorkshire need every opportunity under the sun and I am determined to make that the case.

"Why can't people access opportunity? Often because they literally don't have a bus or a tram and they can't get to their job or training opportunity. So that's a massive problem.

"We've got to have the right skills system and the government has said they're going to give mayors more powers over the education system, so we can join up the education system with the economy we're creating."

Coppard said that free travel for young people aged between five and 18, currently in place in Barnsley and Sheffield, would eventually be rolled out across South Yorkshire.

Former minister Alan Milburn is expected to set out recommendations for tackling the issue as part of a major report in the coming weeks.

The IPPR suggested a universal youth employment service with personalised support and a new youth allowance that would replace different Universal Credit rates based on work capability.

Lord David Blunkett, former secretary of state for education and employment, said his route from a council estate in Sheffield to becoming Britain's first blind cabinet minister was "neither straightforward nor assured".

"I know, therefore, something of what it means to stand at the threshold of adult life without a clear path ahead," he said.

"Young people have an immense amount to give. With national ambition, local leadership and the willingness to invest, we can ensure that birthplace does not determine a young person's future."

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