by Trevor Sturgess

Bluewater shopping centre has unveiled an apprenticeship scheme as youth unemployment hits record levels.

Figures published yesterday (16) revealed that 731,000 18-24 year olds are now on the dole nationwide. If 16 - 17year olds are added in, the total soars to 947,000.

The Bluewater scheme has taken on six 18 - and 19-year olds from North West Kent to undergo a 12-month apprenticeship that will take them into all areas of retailing.

The scheme has been developed by Bluewater and The Learning Shop, a partnership between Lend Lease, which manages the shopping and leisure complex, North West College and JobentrePlus.

In the 10 years since it opened, Bluewater has provided work for 22,000 people, with around 40 per cent in the 16 to 24 year old age range.

The scheme attracted more than 50 applicants and could be repeated in future years if the first intake proves a success.

Bluewater manager Andrew Parkinson said the centre’s 10th anniversary was more than just a series of celebrations.

“One thing we really wanted to provide was a legacy for the future,” he said. “16 - to 24 year olds have always been a big part of Bluewater. Retail is a young vibrant industry and it led us to think about apprenticeship scheme.

“At the end of the scheme they will have an NVQ qualification and hopefully they will have employment as well. Having worked with retailers and outselves, it will provide them with not just a job but a career.”

He added that it was a unique scheme that could prove a role model for other shopping centres.

Meanwhile, the CBI, the employers’ organization, said rising youth unemployment was alarming and urged the Low Pay Commission to set the minimum wage at a “cautious” level so as not to price young people out of apprenticeships in a difficult jobs market.

Katja Hall, CBI director of employment policy, said: “The rising level of youth unemployment is alarming and we cannot afford to lose a generation of young people. Apprenticeships are an excellent path to employment but their availability would be constrained if a minimum wage was set too high. “