Unemployed young people turn to volunteering and training

But the foundation’s Listen Up! 2011 report, based on a survey of nearly 5,400 11- to 25-year-olds, also found that almost three-quarters of young people do not feel enough is being done to help them into employment.

More than half of young people questioned said they are taking or plan to take a course to gain more skills, while 40 per cent said they volunteer and 42 per cent are doing unpaid work to gain employment experience.

One respondent, 18-year-old Ansa Mubashir, from south London, said: "I was hoping to start work when I left school but I realised that there weren’t many opportunities to do what I wanted to do. 

"I’m starting another course in September because I need as many skills as I can get so I stand out from other people when I apply for jobs. I’m going to have to work through the summer to save some money and I’m not going to be able to spend as much time with my friends, but I am worried about the future so I just have to do it."

Despite the government’s announcement in March that it will fund 40,000 extra apprenticeships, 36 per cent of respondents said more should be created with a further 40 per cent saying that more businesses should be encouraged to set up internship programmes.

Trudy Kilcullen, chief operations officer at the foundation, said: "Unemployment figures show how valid young people’s concerns are with an alarming number of 16- to 24-year-olds currently out of work. We recognise there are efforts being made to provide more opportunities for young people but our survey shows knowledge of these schemes isn’t filtering through to hard-working youngsters who want to take advantage of them. 

"There is also still a serious shortfall in the number of apprenticeships and internships, and we are calling on government, businesses and funders to do all they can to ensure young people don’t end up on the scrapheap."

While 80 per cent of the young people questioned are aiming to go to university, two-thirds think the changes to tuition fees and student loans will make higher education too expensive for the majority of school leavers. More than three-quarters of respondents to the survey think that higher education should be more affordable. 

Despite the difficult economic situation 40 per cent of the young people said their ambitions for the future haven’t changed in the past 12 months, but they will have to work harder to ensure success.