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Survey launch: Impact of GenAI on job-seeking youth

Movement to Work are conducting research with Oxford Insights into the impact of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) on job-seeking young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs).

As part of this research, we are conducting a survey between July 8th – 26th to gather quantitative information on a broad sample of young people.

This research aims to provide insights that will encourage employers to future-proof job opportunities and help prepare NEET youth for the AI-augmented workforce.

We would like to ask our network for help with distributing this survey to those in our target audience.

The survey will focus on young people (16-30 yrs) who are not in employment, education, or training at the time of the survey. The survey will be distributed through Google Forms, and all data will be handled in compliance with GDPR. The survey will involve 3 sections: barriers to employment, attitudes toward and uses of generative AI and demographic information. Participants will be able to opt-in to receive educational resources on generative AI and have the chance to win a voucher.

Please use the following resources to facilitate sharing this survey:

  1. A link to the survey: https://bit.ly/mtw-genai
  2. A printable poster including a QR code linking to the survey: Download now
  3. A scannable QR code that links to the survey: Download now

Partners

Movement to Work, in partnership with the Prince’s Trust and co-sponsored by Accenture UK, Microsoft and GetMyFirstJob, has commissioned Oxford Insights to conduct research and compile findings between June and September 2024. Please stay tuned for the latest news and updates.

For further information on how to get involved, please reach out to: info@movementtowork.com

Nominees for 2024 MtW Youth Employability Awards

We are absolutely delighted to announce the following nominees for the upcoming MtW Youth Employability Awards on Monday 15th April!

Huge congratulations to all these incredible nominees, you should all be so proud of yourselves!

2024 MtW Youth Employability Awards – Nominees

Best Newcomer – Employer
  • N Brown Group (JD Williams & Company Ltd)
  • RAF Museum
  • Strive Developments
Best Newcomer – Partner
  • Think Forward UK 
  • YMCA England & Wales
  • YouthBuild Ventures UK
Employer of the Year 
  • BAE Systems
  • Civil Service
  • Department for Transport
  • Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
  • HMRC Debt Management
  • Marriott Hotels
  • NHS
  • Tesco
Mentor of the Year
  • Andrew Smith –  Catch 22
  • Catherine Legg  DWP
  • Claire Robinson  DWP
  • Ellie Fitzpatrick  DWP
  • Elsie Vivian –  MBDA UK
  • Isabel Howden –  Springboard
  • Kirsty Brookes –  DWP
  • Maxine Simpson –  Marriott
  • Naomi Pitt –  DWP
  • Paul Young –  Ministry of Justice
  • Rebecca Slade  –  Springboard
  • Robert Dell –  DWP
  • Sam Meakings –  DWP
  • Sharon Thorpe –  Springboard
Partner of the Year 
  • Ambitious About Autism
  • Bridge of Hope
  • CareerMap
  • Carers Trust
  • Catch 22
  • DFN Project Search
  • Generation UK
  • PeoplePlus
  • The Prince’s Trust
Individual Impact Award
  • Amanda Riley –  Ministry of Justice
  • Angela Buchan –  DWP
  • Angela Burns –  DWP
  • Julie Stone –  DWP
  • Kirsty Brookes –  DWP
  • Marianne Lester –  DWP
  • Marriott HR Team –  Marriott
  • Rachael Cunningham –  Thames Water
  • Sam Meakings –  DWP
Innovator of the Year Award
  • Apprentice Nation
  • Bridge of Hope Careers
  • Bristol Temple Street Movement to Work Team (DWP)
  • Careerscope
  • Carers Trust
  • DFN Project Search
  • Georgina Huntley (Manpower Group)
  • His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs (HMRC)
  • Mary Scales on behalf of DWP           
  • Salesforce with Catch 22
  • ThinkForward UK
  • William Holt (DWP)
  • Youth Employment UK
Rising Star Award
  • Calum Hayes –  M&S
  • Chloe Bunce –  DWP
  • Chloe Martin –  Princes Trust for M&S
  • Daniel Zinczenko –  Princes Trust for M&S
  • Dean Lake –  BAE Systems
  • Emma Charles-Wilson –  Accenture
  • Gabrielle Howell –  BAE Systems
  • Gary Graham –  Springboard UK & Diageo
  • Jessica Wiseman –  Accenture
  • Lauren Gibson –  M&S
  • Liam Kelleher –  People Plus & Tesco
  • Mary Pyne –  NHS
  • Naveen Ganesaperumal –  M&S
  • Olivia Horner –  Springboard UK
  • Paige Mitchie –  Tesco
  • Rahima Zakaria Bismillar –  Manpower Group
  • Shane Lee –  M&S
  • Sophie Cooke –  M&S
Breakthrough Star Award
  • Alistair Kemley –  Springboard UK
  • Bradley Hadlington –  DWP
  • Brandon Tattersall –  BAE Systems
  • Burhan Wardak –  M&S
  • Cassie Grant, Jacob Mohammed-Irvine & Katie Billings –  DWP
  • Connor Wise –  M&S
  • Damian Trunchion –  Tesco
  • David Carter –  DWP
  • Elizabeth Samrau – The Prince’s Trust
  • Emily Saker –  M&S
  • Grace Harrison-Volz –  M&S
  • Guled Sudi – The Prince’s Trust
  • Lara Evans –  Princes Trust & M&S
  • Lewis Abel –  M&S
  • Micah Fisher –  Springboard UK
  • Nial McDevitt –  M&S
  • Oran Murphy –  M&S
  • Ryan Welch –  MBDA UK
  • Sophie Pace-Balzan –  Diageo
  • Sophie Rosa Leigh –  M&S
  • Thomas Wan –  BAE Systems
  • Tobi Azeez –  Princes Trust
  • Toni Hollywood –  BAE Systems & The Prince’s Trust

Big thank you to everyone who took the time to submit a nomination, it was a privilege to read your stories.

If you haven’t got a ticket yet, please reach out to the team at events@movementtowork.com and someone will try to help.

Looking forward to seeing you at the event very soon!

 

 

Sareena Bains 

CEO, Movement to Work 

Farewell to Jan Palin, outgoing Head of Insight and Innovation

Throughout my time at the Movement, I have continued to ‘pinch’ myself every day working with a fabulous dynamic and driven team whose sole mission is to level the playing field for young people. Young people matter – we should never forget that!

Community Ownership Fund

More community projects are set to benefit from funding to rescue prized local assets, such as sports clubs, music venues and historic buildings, as the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities launches the third round of its £150 million Community Ownership Fund.

Changes to the fund will make it easier than ever for community groups to seize back control of prized local assets that are at risk of being lost forever – helping to strengthen and level up communities and restore optimism, hope, and pride in the UK.

Find out more here!

Want to find out how the Community Ownership Fund is supporting the Scottish Community? Click here!

Movement to Work welcomes BAE Systems Chief Executive as new Chair

We are delighted to announce that Charles Woodburn, BAE Systems Chief Executive, has taken on the role of Chair of Movement to Work. Charles takes over from Olly Benzecry who has been Chair since 2020. Olly has recently been appointed as Chair of Shaw Trust and will remain a Trustee of Movement to Work.

On his appointment, Charles Woodburn, BAE Systems Chief Executive, said: “It’s vital for UK industry and for the future of our business that we invest in the next generation. It’s a privilege to serve an organisation doing such important work. All too often young people get trapped in a vicious cycle of ‘no experience, no job,’ which limits their career prospects.

“I’m passionate about providing high-quality work placements that give young people a route into long-term employment and help businesses access the talent we need to succeed. Through Movement to Work, I’ve seen first-hand the impact these opportunities can have on our communities and the company.”

Gillian Churchill, CEO of Movement to Work, said: “From all at Movement to Work, we would like to thank Olly for his leadership, counsel and support over the last three years and welcome Charles to the Chair position. We look forward to working together to continue to grow The Movement and deliver quality work placements and training opportunities to even more young people across the country.”

Meet our youngest team member: Sophie Fletcher

Meet Sophie Fletcher – Movement to Work’s Administrative Assistant. Sophie joined Movement to Work in December 2021 and is on a placement facilitated by Catch22 and funded by NCS UK Year of Service. We put a few key questions to Sophie so that our network could get to know our youngest hire to date…

Tell us a bit about yourself…

I’m Sophie and I’m 22 years old. After starting with Movement to Work in December, I have learned so much I didn’t know before. This is my second admin job after mainly retail roles and it’s a whole sector I haven’t thought too much about before. The team works really well together and in my first few days here I felt more supported than any other job I’ve had. It’s very clear the people here truly care about what they do and the thousands of young people they are trying to reach. It’s personally motivated me to make a change in not just my community but around the country by joining the team on its charitable mission. Did you know that Movement to Work has helped to create more than 135,000 opportunities for young people since 2013? The amazing work helps young people everywhere and I’m proud to now be a part of that effort!

What barriers were you facing to work before you joined the movement?

Before I joined the Movement, I had been made redundant from my previous job and had to register at the JobCentre. I struggled a lot with anxiety which made it hard for me to find work, as I wanted to work from home and not have a people-facing role but those jobs are hard to find. I also did not have a lot of previous experience in admin which is what I was trying to pursue, so I found that my applications would be ignored because I didn’t have the experience needed. So I found myself in stuck – not being given the opportunity to gain the experience I wanted and needed. Additionally, I didn’t have the best grades in school – I failed maths about 4 times – which immediately lowered my chances of getting a job, especially in admin.

What have you been doing for the Movement since you started?

Since I started working with the Movement, I have been involved in many different areas of work. I have been a part of cross-checking data, I have supported large scale events, I have reviewed brand communications and given feedback. As a young person being exposed to so  many different aspects of a organisation, I now have more skills and knowledge in varied departments – which is great! I have definitely found some aspects hard to understand and challenging, but being a part of a variety of projects has been exciting.

What have you learned since joining?

While I have been here, I have learned more than I could ever list! I have learned what a real team looks like. Job titles don’t really matter here – everyone is always supporting each other and being treated equally, and because of that we always succeed. I have also learned a lot about patience. Patience is something I struggle with (I don’t have a lot of it for myself!) but now I am able to be more patient with myself, and I have seen what it’s like to have patient management – it makes such a huge difference to the working environment and the mindset of the employees. I had never worked in a charity before, nor was it something I had particular interest in as it was a sector totally unexplored for me. I have observed and understood a lot about the differences between the two sectors; not-for-profit charity and for-profit businesses. The values, meaning, mission and the heart that goes into this charity is eye opening and inspiring. I have learned to be more confident and have more belief in my skills and capabilities. Confidence is key, not being afraid to ask questions, not being afraid to ask twice if you didn’t understand it the first time. Having the confidence in yourself to do that and know its okay is such a valuable thing.

What have you enjoyed the most?

What I have found most enjoyable is the inclusiveness, the support, and getting together with the team. The Movement is made up of a small group of people who mostly live far away from each other, so having team meetings throughout the week just to check in with each other and see what work they are doing is great. Being connected with the people you work with has been something new to me and so refreshing. I have also loved being part of the UK Year of Service placement and working with Catch22 – having that external support has been amazing. I had away training days in Swindon with UK Year of Service and it was so much fun. Everyone seemed to be so like-minded and all have the same passion of helping others. We were able to connect with other people and share ideas and experiences that contributed to our growth as individuals but also within the workplace. It has meant so much to see so many organisations sharing the same passion and drive to help young people work.

What advice would you give to a young person who is unemployed right now?

If I were to give advice to someone unemployed, I would tell them to not give up searching for what their passion is. I would tell them that even without great grades and lots of experience that you can still find a team that wants to help you and build your skillset. I think I would advise them to be open minded and take opportunities when they can because it could lead them to find exactly what they were looking for. I think I would also advise them not to be too hard on themselves when they are working, it’s easy to think that not being perfect at what you do is the end of the world when really it just means you’re learning.

What advice would you give to an employer considering setting up a youth employability programme?

I would advise that they take into consideration that not everyone’s learning style is the same. I would advise them to get to know who they are working with and what support they need individually as that makes the employee feel so much more understood and heard. I feel I would also advise them to take advantage of social media by spreading the word about their programmes as these platforms are gold for reaching young people and sharing new opportunities. Above all though, I think the most important thing an employer considering setting up a youth employability programme should do is understand what they want their results to be. What is the aim? What do you want the outcome to be? You must make sure its accessible to everyone and show the young people that this will give them skills and knowledge that could be invaluable to them.

Connect with Sophie on LinkedIn and help grow her network!

Sophie will be sharing her blog starting on our next newsletter. Not registered? Subscribe now.

THE SKILLS IMPERATIVE 2035: ESSENTIAL SKILLS FOR TOMORROW’S WORKFORCE.

The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) has published a report looking at the skills people will need for the future world of work.

The current world of work is in a state of transformation due to technological advancements, environmental changes, demographic shifts, and the impact of Covid-19. Calls are intensifying for workforce reskilling and a re-engineering of education and training to meet the demands of the future.

Current policy in England focuses on technical, digital and green economy skills, underpinned by strong literacy and numeracy and a knowledge-rich school curriculum. There is currently limited understanding of the combination of essential employment skills which will be needed, their relative importance, and how to develop them.

To fill this evidence gap, the NFER research study, ‘the Skills Imperative 2035: Essential skills for tomorrow’s workforce’ looks at:

  • Which essential employment skills will be most needed in 2035;
  • What will their likely supply be and where the gaps will be;
  • Which occupations and workers are most at risk of not having these skills;
  • Which skills will affected workers need to develop to transition into new employment opportunities, and
  • The role of educators and employers in helping to prepare young people and workers for the future labour market.

There seems little doubt that the labour market will change and evolve over time.  The report suggests that some sectors will develop while others will decline: –

  • Growing sectors are predicted to be health, social & personal care roles; education; professional services; sales/business development; creative, digital & design; green economy; information & communication; and natural & applied sciences.
  • Declining sectors are predicted to be administrative/secretarial; manufacturing/production; and retail/cashier work. Agricultural and business administration/finance sectors are also widely expected to decline.

The report also found that in addition to literacy & numeracy and technical / digital skills, that transferable and interpersonal skills will become ever more important in the face of technology. These are categorised as: –

  1. Analytical/creative;
  2. Interpersonal;
  3. Self-management; and
  4. Emotional intelligence skills.

While self-management skills and social and emotional strengths are generally found to be better predictors of income at the age 25 than cognitive skills, well-developed essential employment skills have also been linked to a higher level of academic performance. However, there is little doubt that there will be significant challenges in the forthcoming years for both educational institutes, training providers and employers, who will all need to respond quickly to address future need.

The full report can be accessed here.

THE YOUTH EMPLOYMENT INDEX.

According to recently published research by PwC and the Youth Futures Foundation (YFF), a significant proportion of young people risk being stranded in low-wage work, or outside education or employment, in the coming decades, unless the UK creates a more inclusive and resilient labour market.

The Youth Employment Index research is a collaboration between PwC and YFF which measures, benchmarks and monitors youth employment and the access of young populations to education and training across OECD countries.

The UK labour market has performed in the middle-of-the-pack for many years in terms of its opportunities for young people, with many of the most vulnerable remaining inactive for long periods of time,  The latest published research shows that the UK has improved its ranking to 18th amongst other OECD countries, but has moved up from 20th overall.

Existing trends in the UK labour market were exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, widening existing inequalities affecting young people, especially from minority groups.  At the start of the pandemic, youth unemployment increased by over four percentage points more than the rest of the workforce, with young people being over-represented in shut-down sectors who were more likely to already be employed in temporary jobs and zero hours contracts anyway.

The research recommends a wide range of policy areas to support the development of adaptable, resilient skills, empowering young people to find productive, rewarding work and promote their wellbeing.

The report has developed 13 separate policy proposals – including the development of existing policy and novel policy suggestions. These are policies are categorised under four key areas to help build a comprehensive youth policy strategy, namely: –

  1. Developing skills through investing in better vocational training, improving skills matching, encouraging a more flexible education system and increasing emphasis on place-based policies;
  2. Supporting people by providing proper career guidance and mentorship, promoting well-being in young people, and addressing inequality;
  3. Supporting incomes through improving social safety nets for young people, using targeted fiscal policy during economic downturns and supporting those negatively impacted by technological innovation; and
  4. Shaping labour demand by investing in high productivity sectors, improving legal and regulatory protections for all workers and developing appropriate measures of job quality.

To read the full PwC / YFF research report please access this link.

TWO-THIRDS OF UK WORKERS FIND MAKING FRIENDS REMOTELY CHALLENGING.

Employers have been urged to do more to encourage social connections between remote staff after a survey revealed that nearly two thirds of Brits find it difficult to make work friends while working from home.

A poll of 2,500 UK workers, conducted by OC Tanner as part of its Global Culture Report, found 63% of people said it was more challenging forming new friendships with colleagues while working remotely.

Over half of those polled (58%) also admitted that the office was where most of their new friendships are formed, while 71% of UK workers said they valued colleague interactions.

The research also found that 71% of employees found it easier to make personal connections with people from other generations when in the office, while the same percentage felt they are more able to make friendships with people of different cultures in an office environment.

The findings come as employers were urged to focus on improving flexible working, employee wellbeing and other areas of workplace culture in order to attract talent in an increasingly competitive market.

The People Management article can be found here, while the full Global Culture Report can be found via this link.