Budget 2010: Chancellor pledges to extend job guarantee for young unemployed
Lauren Higgs
Wednesday, March 24, 2010
Chancellor Alistair Darling has pledged to extend the government's job guarantee for unemployed young people until March 2012 as part of his pre-election Budget.
The guarantee, which was first announced in last year's Budget, promises a job or training to every 18- to 24-year-old who has been out of work for six months or more.
The initiative, initially due to run until next year, has cost less than expected, so the money saved so far will be used to fund the extension of the programme.
Darling told Parliament: "No-one under 24 will need to be unemployed for more than six months without being offered a job or training."
The guarantee includes:
- The opportunity to apply for new jobs created through the Future Jobs Fund
- Support to apply for an existing job
- Work-focused training
- The offer of a place on a Community Task Force, carrying out work to support local communties
- Help with self-employment
- Internships for graduates and non-graduates
From April 2010, young people who have been claiming Jobseeker's Allowance for 10 months will be required to take up one of the offers from the guarantee, or risk losing their benefits.
Those who turn down a "suitable" offer once could face losing two weeks' benefit. They could lose four weeks' benefit for a second refusal and 26 weeks' benefits for a third refusal.
An Association of Learning Providers (ALP) representative said: "The ALP warmly welcomes the announcement that the Young Person's Guarantee is being extended to March 2012. It is important, however, that 16- and 17-year-old unemployed youngsters — the youngest members of the NEET group — have continued access to a well-funded Entry to Employment programme, which has proved to be very effective and is delivered by many voluntary sector training organisations."
