Brighton council urges employers to support young people

Employers in Brighton and Hove are being asked to sign a pledge of support to create jobs and raise opportunities and to help young people prepare for work.

Brighton and Hove City Council has urged employers to show their support after announcing that it will be creating 100 apprenticeships in 2016/2017 and a further 150 in 2017/2018. The council has launched the scheme to help tackle the decline of apprenticeships in the city.

The Employment Skills Task Force, which consists of 30 businesses and organisations, is now aiming to provide more opportunities for young people.

Practical plan

The Grand Brighton, Brighton Dome, Brighton Festival, Brighton Aldridge Community Academy, One Family, Coast to Capital LEP, LoveLocalJobs.com and Sussex County Cricket Club have also made a pledge to provide apprenticeship opportunities.

Chairman of the council’s children, young people and skills committee Cllr Tom Bewick said that he was “delighted that the business community has stepped up in this way.”

“We can't create more apprenticeships without employers, so the fact a coalition of business and education leaders have come up with a practical plan for boosting skills opportunities in the city is fantastic news for young people and residents,” he said.

Working relationship

The initiative, which was launched at the end of National Apprenticeship Week, aims to create a closer working relationship between schools and businesses, with more involvement from parents.

The scheme covers the whole of the Greater Brighton region of Adur and Worthing, the Lewes District and Mid Sussex.