Ninety Wallasey school pupils have taken part in a programme aimed at helping students to make informed career choices and prepare them for life beyond education.
The group of Year 12 pupils from St Mary’s Catholic College spent a day taking part in the interactive Learn to Earn workshop, where they were immersed in activities exploring themes such as personal skills and talents, recruitment processes and financial planning.
The session is part of the three-stage Journey to Success programme facilitated by Young Enterprise and SP Energy Network graduates, which aims to empower young people to reach their full potential by helping them make informed decisions about their future.
Following completion of the workshop students can apply for the Young Enterprise Company Programme, giving them the chance to go on to create and actively run their own business. Successful applicants learn about all aspects of setting up a company including business planning, product creation and selling to the public.
The timely initiative follows statistics showing that one in 10 jobseekers in the Merseyside area have been out of employment for at least five years*, and that over a third (36%)* of young people do not feel in control of their job prospects.
The project has been supported by the ScottishPower Foundation, which this year donated a slice of its £1.8million funding pot to the Young Enterprise initiative.
Anthony Brown, North West Regional Manager at Young Enterprise, said: “It’s fantastic to see so many young people in Wallasey enjoying learning about their own talents as well as practical skills which will help them in the future, whatever path they choose to take. We’ve seen some great work from the group already and hope that they’re encouraged to apply for the next stage of the programme.”
Ann McKechin, Trustee and Executive Officer at the ScottishPower Foundation, said: “The Young Enterprise range of programmes being delivered at St Mary’s Catholic College has revealed the many entrepreneurial skills that young people possess in our schools today. Pupils will shortly be embarking on setting up their own company and I am looking forward to hearing about their progress on this new initiative.
“The ScottishPower Foundation is committed to supporting community programmes that inspire young people to get more out of education and develop their future employability skills”.
For further information, please contact Jen Ward, Laura Blyth or Kathryn Wilkie on 0131 561 8628 or spfoundation@stripecommunications.com.
*Research from the Office of National Statistics, (2016).
*Statistics from the Prince’s Trust Youth Index, (2017).