Unemployed youth advised by Scarborough businesswoman

Youth unemployment has reached 974,000 across the UK

Twenty-year-old Jake Wood is one of a growing number of young people without work.

The latest unemployment figures show that joblessness amongst young people has reached 974,000 across the UK.

Jake, who is from Selby, featured on BBC Radio York's breakfast show. His story prompted a local businesswoman to contact the station offering advice.

The couple met a day later and their conversation has inspired Jake to consider starting his own business.

Jake Wood has been unemployed for seven months. He trained as a chef and finished college last July thinking that he'd be able to get work in the hospitality industry.

He said: "I've been looking for work constantly. I've got all the qualifications and I do everything I can. I go online and hand out around 40 CVs a month but there just doesn't seem to be much work around.

"It is hugely depressing as it makes two years of training pointless when you just can't get a job afterwards."

Inspired

Jake's story inspired Elaine White to contact BBC Radio York, she runs her own business in Scarborough, selling 'eco-friendly' catalogue items.

She told BBC Radio York: "I really do believe in helping young people. We've got five grown-up children of our own and they're all doing really well, but it isn't easy."

She has a strong view that running your own business is one way young people can avoid the trap of long-term unemployment.

She said: "I really do believe the way out of recession is going to come from small business. If I can help a young person get started, if they really want to do it, then I'd be really willing to offer all the advice and support that I can."

Jake went to meet Elaine and she offered him a range of advice on how to make his CV stand out and suggested for local jobs he make an extra special effort.

Elaine had plenty of advice to offer Jake

"Take a hand-written letter and your CV in yourself. Wear your best clothes, get your hair slicked down and your shoes polished. Go in and ask for the manager, tell him this is me and I would really love to work here."

Jake was impressed with the suggestion and said: "I suppose that will really show that I want the job rather than just printing it off the computer."

Opportunity

Elaine spoke at length with Jake and said she hoped he would take advantage of the opportunity.

"I've left him with some homework, to find out what it is he really wants from the opportunity I'm offering him. Whether it's a business or whether it's a job he would like.

"He's got to put his heart and soul into some planning, get some things written down about what he wants, how much it's going to cost him and how he's going to achieve it."

She said: "I'm really glad I've come down, it was really great because it's just restored my faith in young people.

"Some of them do want to go to work, they're not all hanging around on street corners, and there are some lovely young people out there."

Jake was left with a great deal to think about but told BBC Radio York that Elaine had really inspired him to consider starting his own business with her help and advice.

"When we were speaking it made me see that working on your own is sometimes better than getting a job when I could work in a kitchen getting minimum wage or work for myself and get paid more.

"I just need to think about it and work out what I'm going to do. It's a big decision to make, I'm only 20."