Having been unemployed for almost a year Matthew was delighted to have been awarded a 12 month paid apprenticeship at West Midlands based transport authority Centro.

Matthew was one of twelve apprentices to be hand picked to join The Prince’s Trust and Centro “Get Into Transport” programme.
Running over four weeks, the programme supports young people who have been long-term unemployed, have struggled at school, have been in trouble with the law or have been in care. The programme gives young people the opportunity to learn practical skills and gain hands on experience in the transport services industry.

Matthew started to attend Seetec Aston in December 2009 as part of the Flexible New Deal Programme. Matthew previously worked in a call centre but had been out of work for over a year. Seetec’s Employment Consultant in Aston, Elizabeth said,

“The scheme has been a real success and we hope that we can provide more opportunities for young people. Matthew has worked really hard to gain his apprenticeship and we are all really proud of him.”

The training programme gave the apprentices the opportunity to experience a number of different job roles in Customer Service including Transport Information Surveyors, Bus Stations and Interchange, Smartcard, and Business Administration, and learn how Centro promotes and develops public transport across the West Midlands.

They also received help to improve their teamwork, communication and interview skills boosting their confidence and updating their CV at the same time. Around one in five young people in the UK are not in work, education or training.

Youth unemployment costs the UK economy £10 million a day in lost productivity, while youth crime costs £1 billion every year. The Prince’s Trust has over 700 staff and 7,000 volunteers to support 14-30 year-olds to help them into work, education and training. The Trust supported more than 4,000 young people last year to turn their lives around.

On hearing the good news that he had been offered a place on the ‘Get into Transport’ Scheme, Matthew said,

"I am really shocked, but it is fantastic news. I would encourage anyone who gets the opportunity to do one of these programmes. I’ve had a great time and am really excited about starting work with Centro full time. 　Thank you Centro, thank you Seetec and thank you Prince’s Trust."

If you would like more information on the Flexible New Deal programme, call Seetec on: 0121 616 4420