Employers must do more for young people

Unlike my 13 year old brother, I am looking forward to the start of the new school term. I will carry on doing paired reading with an S3 pupil from a high school, as part of a group of business volunteers who give time and encouragement to young people in North Edinburgh.

My mentee goes to a school that is working hard to help pupils aspire to the future they deserve, in one of the poorest areas of the city where many of the parents don't work. So far, paired reading has proved to be one of the hardest things – and one of the best – that I have ever done with an hour of my week.

As term starts, the news that Scots pupils have passed a record number of highers has been welcomed. But it's overshadowed by the unemployment figures out this week that show rising numbers of young people joining the dole queue. In some areas it has more than doubled.

So it's a good time to ask, what can we do to motivate young people into work and how can schools get the message across about the benefits of a job?

Curriculum reform opens doors to the possibilities. And the business community are well placed to step in here to show the value of problem solving, working with others and what it means to make the most of opportunities. We can’t teach a young person how to be enterprising but we can nurture and encourage curiosity about different jobs and the value of independence. No teenager will argue that it's a good thing to have money in your pocket.

Other volunteers in the North Edinburgh business group are from catering, financial services, fitness and leisure and a range of backgrounds. We get involved in mentoring, shadowing, or leading a workshop in job preparation skills.

The North Edinburgh group was the first in the city set up and delivered by the charity Scottish Business in the Community who now have funding from the council to roll the employability skills programme out to every school, including special schools.

Regardless of what you think about businesses getting involved with schools, the feedback is that the experience is extremely valuable for pupils and staff. Teachers say young people respond differently to adults from the ‘real world’ outside the school walls who bother to take time out to talk to them.

Now, SBC are looking for more businesses to set up groups for every school in the city to get more young people switched onto the opportunities and realities of the range of jobs in different sectors.

It's one positive way to open young people up to possibilities out there; a glimpse of what their future might look like. I remember one mock interview I did with a bright fourth year pupil who was extremely enthusiastic about being a hairdresser. I asked her would she like to work for an existing salon, or set up her own business. Her eyes widened and she said, “Do you think I would be able to?”

I volunteer at local schools because it’s fun, rewarding and because young people need to be able to draw on every resource available to them. If you would like to be one of them you can contact Scottish Business in the Community.