**Sturgeon announces £6.1m to help young Scots into employment

The multi-million pound investment will create up to 700 job training opportunities for young people between the age of 16 and 29, helping to boost their job prospects and gain job opportunities.

It is aimed at young people who face barriers into work including those with a disability or who may have left the military early.

It comes as part of the next phase of the Community Jobs Scotland (CJS) programme, which is delivered in partnership with the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) and creates jobs within the third sector.

?Young people will be able to take up training posts through the programme that last between 12 and 18 months.

Speaking at the annual SCVO gathering on Wednesday, Sturgeon said voluntary workers are essential in building a fairer and wealthier country and are vital in encouraging participation among young people.?

“It is so important that most of the places will be filled by people who currently find it harder to get jobs – carers, people leaving care, people with disabilities, and people leaving military service – and is a further example of the role the third sector can play in promoting opportunities and tackling inequality,” she said.

“CJS has been an overwhelming success, with almost 70 per cent of young people involved in the programme going onto a job or further education.

“That is especially impressive when you consider that many of the places are reserved for groups who sometimes face particular difficulty in entering the workplace.

“We want to respect people’s dignity, value their potential and encourage their ambitions because doing that, and providing the practical support which helps people to fulfil their potential, is the best way of achieving a fairer and more prosperous Scotland.”

??The announced funding brings the total investment into the CJS programme to £45m since it was launched in 2011, with 6,500 job training opportunities for young people created to date.

Martin Sime, chief executive of SCVO added: “This is fantastic news for the young unemployed people who’ll get the chance of a job with a voluntary organisation making a difference in their community.”

Earlier this week a £60m programme to help young people in the South West of Scotland into employment was launched as a result of funding from the European Commission’s Youth Employment Initiative.