AN employability scheme is offering 20 young people the chance to upskill and turn their lives around.
The M&S and Prince’s Trust ‘Make Your Mark’ scheme offers unemployed young people aged 16-24 training and mentoring to help them find a job.
All 11 Northern Ireland participants who took part in and passed each element of the programme this summer have since been offered jobs at M&S.
The company has now kicked off its autumn programme with 20 more Make Your Mark places in Lisburn.
One of the young people offered a role following the first Make Your Mark intake in July was Adam Gent.
Adam, who was unemployed for almost six months, is now a cafe assistant at M&S Simply Food in Bow Street Mall.
He said: “The Prince’s Trust was invaluable in providing me with the opportunity and training needed to assist me in my search for a job.
“M&S has provided me with the opportunity to gain experience within an industry I was not familiar with and has made me realise that I have the ability and confidence to work in the retail environment.”
Make Your Mark is inspired by Marks & Start, M&S’ successful employability scheme for people who face barriers to employment.
Since 2004 it has enabled over 1,100 young people to complete placements with M&S or another employer within three months of participating in the scheme.
The new scheme aims to take this to the next level with a commitment to support even more young people across the UK.
To find out more about the next programme in Lisburn or anywhere across the UK, call 0800 842 842 or visit www.princes-trust.org.uk/makeyourmark
Meanwhile, a recent ceremony at Parliament Buildings celebrated Northern Ireland’s success at the recent WorldSkills competition in Leipzig, Germany.
Nine male competitors from Northern Ireland formed part of the 34 strong Team UK at Worldskills 2013 — the largest contingent from the UK regions.
Matthew Quinn, a student at Belfast Metropolitan College/Riverpark Training and employed by Charles Hurst, took away a bronze medal for auto body repair.
Six other competitors from NI won Medallions for Excellence, which are awarded to those who reach a world class level in their discipline.
Speaking at the reception, Minister for Employment and Learning Stephen Farry said: “All nine of these young men deserve the highest praise for being selected as the best person to represent the UK in their particular skill to compete against the best of the best from across the globe.
“Skills competitions are a key tool in raising standards of training, promoting skills, up-skilling the workforce, enhancing business performance in the economy and showcasing the opportunities that a vocational career route can offer.
“Ensuring that Northern Ireland has a skilled workforce is fundamentally important to our economy and developing new young talent is a vital part of that.”