A CHARITY in London’s deprived East End is taking the recession by the scruff of the neck’ and beating the jobless trend among school-leavers. The City Gateway organisation has halved the number on the dole over the past three years from 15 per cent in one of Britain’s most deprived boroughs

By Gemma Collins

A CHARITY in London’s deprived East End is taking the recession by the scruff of the neck’ and beating the jobless trend among school-leavers.

Kids just leaving education are being hardest hit by the credit crunch, Government figures reveal this week.

It has estimated an average jobless school-leaver at 16 will cost the taxpayer �97,000, some as much as �300,000.

HALVED

But the City Gateway training organisation says it has halved the number on the dole over the past three years from 15 per cent in Tower Hamlets, one of Britain’s most deprived boroughs.

“We’ve worked with disengaged youngsters through the boom times and we’re more determined than ever to support them now,” said the charity’s chief Eddy Stride.

“We’re offering work placement focussed on training, with personal support which was impossible in traditional education. This builds up trust, with their next step in sight.”

SKILLS

The charity, which has a deal with several City companies around the Bishopsgate and Aldgate for apprenticeship opportunities at the end of work placements, works with 200 youngsters from housing estates every year.

Earlier in the year, Tory national leader David Cameron praised the charity for taking young adults from these housing estates and training them in the skills the economy will need in the future.

Mr Cameron wanted to see more City Gateways come in, “take this recession by the scruff of the neck” and help get people into work.