Ladder for the Black Country: Rebuilding brick by brick

The then 20 year old from Pendeford had been working at Millie's Cookies in Wolverhampton's Mander Centre for two years but had always wanted to work in accounting ever since completing her National Diploma in Business at City of Wolverhampton College.

She was not sure where to turn.

That is where the Ladder for the Black Country came in.

"I contacted the Ladder and they said there was a vacancy at Blakemore's," she said.

"It was very quick. I went for my first interview with Performance Through People on the Tuesday, I had an interview with the employer on Friday, and started for a week's trial the following Monday."

Fast forward 12 months and Stephanie, 21, has now been taken on full time in the firm's treasury department. It makes her not only the first apprentice to come through the Ladder for the Black Country, but also the first to be offered a full-time job.

She said: "I can't believe how fast it has gone. The opportunity has been brilliant and I felt I have learnt so much. If you asked me 12 months ago where I would be now I would have had no idea. I am much more confident and I have come a long way."

Stephanie now hopes to study for a higher level qualification and develop her role at AF Blakemore's head office at Longacres Industrial Estate in Rose Hill, Willenhall.

In just one year, 700 apprenticeships have been created thanks to the Ladder for the Black Country.

These jobs account for a sizeable part of the hugely welcome fall in youth unemployment.

Together, these young people in a variety of jobs and disciplines are rebuilding the Black Country and charting the path to its future.

Combined with the more recently launched Ladder for Staffordshire and Ladder for Shropshire, there are now almost 1,000 more places with employers for dedicated and talented young people to learn a trade and earn a wage.

We could not be prouder of each and every one of them. The same can be said for more than 200 employers who have risen to the challenge we set them and created these positions.

It is no simple task to reverse youth unemployment. A lack of opportunity does not just blight one generation, it can drag down entire towns and cities.

Work training schemes have closed all over the country and industry itself spent years in decline. The solution of successive governments was to encourage more and more young people into university. This is a route that works for many, but one size does not fit all. Many careers could start much sooner with on-the-job training, such as that offered by an apprenticeship.

Young people need to know that there is a future for them after school.

They need jobs. But more than that they need meaningful, skilled careers.

The Black Country was always the engine room of the world, making things sent across the planet. It still is, but it must also be at the forefront of innovation. That requires young minds and fresh ideas.

Businesses, in whatever their industry or trade, need to be able to invest in the next generation of talent. An apprenticeship is not something that anyone enters into lightly.

And that is why the support of Performance Through People has been so essential in making sure the right people go to the right jobs.

Similarly, The Vine Trust, which has given so many young people a second chance to shine, has been pivotal in making this first year a success.

We are very grateful for the continued support of His Royal Highness, The Duke of York, in encouraging businesses to come forward and create the opportunities for young workers.

We have now climbed the first few rungs of the Ladder for the Black Country. There is a long way still to go. But from where we stand already, the view is spectacular.

AF Blakemore, which was established as a grocery store in 1917, is now one of the market leaders in retail wholesale, distribution, and supplying shop fittings. It is still a family-run business but now employs around 8,000 people with a turnover of £1.3 billion.

The company also runs the largest division of Spar stores, owning 295 shops and serving more than 970 in total across England and Wales.

Karen Tolley, treasury supervisor, is Stephanie's line manager.

She said: "Steph has come on leaps and bounds. She has come out of her shell and we are incredibly pleased with her progress. She has grown as a person and grown in confidence.

"The Ladder for the Black Country has been fantastic and working with PTP has opened doors for us."

Scott Munro-Morris, group finance director, said: "It has worked out really well for us.

"We have a lot of staff who have served us for a long time, and as retirement comes closer the company needs to bring in new employees to take the business forward.

"Apprenticeships allow you to bring in staff who are young and just starting out. It gives them an opportunity and in the right environment they flourish – Steph is testament to that.

"We have taken on at least half a dozen apprentices. They get training on the job and we fully support them on a career path. The opportunities are there for them. It is an investment which pays off."

Expanding

The Ladder for the Black Country has created more than 700 apprenticeships with more than 200 employers taking part.

The campaign has also expanded into Staffordshire and Shropshire.

Gill Durkin, business development director of training provider PTP, said: "It is fantastic to hear the progress of our apprentices.

"Stephanie is a prime example of a young person who needed a company to give her a chance and that all-important opportunity. She has gone from strength to strength and we congratulate her on securing full time employment with a fantastic company like AF Blakemore.

"Apprenticeships are beneficial to apprentices and employers and Stephanie's story epitomises what the Ladder for the Black Country is all about."

When the Express & Star launched the Ladder for the Black Country, Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley, and Walsall had some of the highest levels of youth employment in England – around double the national average.

A decline in industry and the closure of work training schemes has seen today's 18 to 24-year-olds finding it harder than ever to get on the job ladder.

The biggest obstacle faced by young people is a lack of work experience and one of the greatest concerns for businesses is the low number of skilled employees.

But bit by bit we are starting to turn this around.

Group effort

The campaign got off to a great start with Accord housing group pledging to take on 50 apprentices, Walsall Housing Group (WHG), 10 and Ikea Wednesbury, 15.

The Express & Star took on five journalist apprentices who have now completed 12 months of their 18-month programme.

One of the biggest pledges came from Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust which will take on more than 100 apprentices from healthcare assistants to business administrators.

This time last year there was more than 8,000, 16-24 year-olds in the dole queues across the Black Country. That figure is now less than 5,000. We are getting there, but there is still work to do.

Since launching in Staffordshire this summer there has also been great enthusiasm from business owners.

In Burntwood, Steel Processings has taken on seven apprentices and Little Chimps Day Nursery in Wimblebury took on two apprentices and pledged to take on a third.

Backed by the Duke of York, the Express & Star joined forces with a team of expert partners to launch the Ladder for the Black Country.

We continue to call on small, medium and large employers from across the area to take on apprentices – even if it is just one.

And we are urging young people to grab this opportunity to learn, to train and to take the first steps of their working lives.

Government backing

In the last year Chancellor George Osborne has visited the region twice and met with apprentices linked with the Ladder for the Black Country.

His last visit in July was B&W Billiards in Cradley Heath which has taken on two apprentices through the Ladder. The company has since moved to a new showroom and workshop in Brierly Hill.

Owner Yvonne Westwood said: "We are a highly-skilled craft and it is important that we are able to train new staff who will hopefully be able to carry on the business when us old fogies retire.

It is important that these skills carry on and that is why we think the Ladder for the Black Country scheme is so worthy and the right course of action."

A key member of the Ladder for the Black Country is Walsall-based social enterprise charity The Vine Trust, which has a track record of taking on apprentices – and in many cases given youngsters who have previously been written off a second chance to shine.

Led by Kevin Davis, the charity has set up the Black Country's first studio school based at the £3 million Goldmine Building, in Lower Hall Lane, Walsall.

As well as teaching GCSEs and other qualifications, pupils also get weekly work experience.

They also run a successful apprenticeship scheme which has seen youngsters work at the trust's Vines restaurants in Walsall and Stourbridge, and with Swedish superstore Ikea in Wednesbury.

Manning the hotlines and bringing their expertise to the campaign is training provider Performance Through People which is the link between employers and youngsters seeking an apprenticeship and also the training providers including the City of Wolverhampton College.

The Black Country Chamber of Commerce is also promoting the scheme through its membership while the Black Country councils in Wolverhampton, Sandwell, Dudley, and Walsall have also supported the campaign.

Brick by brick

A report from the Work Foundation has highlighted the West Midlands as one of the areas which is suffering high youth unemployment.

The Geography of Youth Unemployment: A Route Map for Change report by Lizzie Crowley and Nye Cominetti recommends local initiatives such as the Ladder for the Black Country campaign.

"No one agency alone can tackle youth unemployment," the authors state.

"It requires co-ordinated action from a range of organisations, including: policy makers; educators and training providers; employment support agencies; voluntary and community organisations; business representative organisations and businesses themselves."

The Ladder has helped create 700 apprenticeships in just one year. Brick by brick, together we can rebuild the Black Country.