Almost two thirds of young people in Birmingham believe they will have to leave the city to build a future, according to a report in Children and Young People Now
Concerns about rising youth unemployment in the city were raised by delegates at an event organised by youth education charity Envision, attended by more than 200 young people.
A poll taken at the Birmingham is…? event found that 86 per cent of delegates were proud to be from the city but 63 per cent could not see themselves building a future there. A similar proportion felt that Birmingham was not doing enough to tackle youth unemployment.
Envision Birmingham’s regional manager Cameron Nimmo said: "Young people are facing some tough challenges and it’s important now more than ever to get behind them and give them the inspiration, the encouragement and the support to help them realise their ambitions.
“This debate shows that young people want more open dialogue with city leaders. Events like this and youth organisations such as Envision are the perfect opportunity to show young people that their opinions are valued.”
The event was part of the Co-operative Foundation’s Truth About Youth project, which is being delivered by charities across the country.
Last month the Department for Education revealed that a record 1.16 million 16- to 24-year-olds – 19 per cent of the age group – were not in education, employment or training in the third quarter of 2011.
The government is aiming to help at least 410,000 18- to 24-year-olds into the workplace through a £1 billion fund to tackle youth unemployment.
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