Letters to the Editor: Job barriers need creative solutions

We welcome Alan Milburn’s report on the failure of the medical, media and legal professions to open up opportunities for young people. 

As a charity working with young people to build up their confidence and employability, we know how tough it is, with 64 per cent of young people saying employers are not positive towards helping them and 60 per cent feeling doors are closed when looking for jobs.

Young people tell us that school is not giving them the tools to succeed in getting jobs. 

Summer universities, such as ours, clearly do not provide the whole answer to social mobility, tackling youth crime and improving job prospects for young people.

But it is incredible just how many places in Britain lack creative activity of this kind. 

Our work is successful because it focuses on the type of person young people want to be, not just the type of job they want, and because we work in partnership with businesses to open up young people to new experiences.

But the demand for our work is five times higher than we can meet.

Sarah Davies, chief executive, Futureversity

Politicians must end child poverty
While the Unicef report shows there was progress towards ending UK child poverty until 2009, we know that the subsequent raft of cuts to family support will take a heavy toll on struggling families.

Many of the children who were lifted out of poverty may now be pushed back below the poverty line.
With cuts to financial support to new parents, to support for disabled children and to families needing help with housing costs, austerity measures could damage the life chances and overall wellbeing of our most vulnerable children and families.

The commitment to end child poverty in the UK by 2020 was a watershed moment, but we are now on the verge of slipping backwards and breaking that promise.

It is critical that all politicians join together to reaffirm their commitment to end the scandal ?of child poverty in the UK.

Matthew Reed, chief executive, The Children’s Society