Thousands more young people claim unemployment benefits

Those aged between 16 and 24 claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance went from 415,100 in March to 421,900 in April.

A Prince’s Trust spokesman said the UK’s recession-hit job market was leaving many young people without hope of finding work.

She said: "We are deeply concerned that the number of young people claiming benefits is on the rise once again. There is an ambition crisis among our poorest young people, with thousands believing it will be impossible for them to achieve their goals or even get a job."

These latest benefits figures for March to April suggest that overall youth unemployment, which includes those in education and on incapacity benefit, could rise when the next quarterly figures are released in August.

The latest quarterly figures for overall unemployment among 16- to 24-year-olds showed a drop between January and March.

During the period, there were 935,000 unemployed 16- to 24-year-olds, down 30,000 from the three months to December 2010. The number of 16- to 17-year-olds out of work fell by 1,000 over the same period.

Meanwhile, The Prince’s Trust has released a report into the aspirations of young people. A quarter of those surveyed from disadvantaged homes believed their career goals were unachievable, compared to seven per cent of those from affluent families.

One in six of those from poor homes said their family and friends have even made fun of them when they talk about looking for a good job.

The charity’s chief executive Martina Milburn said: "The aspiration gap between the UK’s richest and poorest young people is creating a youth underclass that tragically feels it has no future."

Last week, the government announced a £60m package of measures to reduce youth unemployment.

This included additional funding for Jobcentre Plus to provide training and work experience places and a £10m fund for charities that support unemployed young people.