Businesses urged to support care leavers

Business leaders in Sunderland are being called on to help remove barriers to work and training for young people leaving care.

Sunderland City Council and Together for Children (TfC) have launched an initiative to improve employment opportunities for care-experienced young people, who face unique challenges accessing apprenticeships. 

In an open letter written to Sunderland’s business community, leaders have outlined steps to make recruitment more inclusive, including guaranteed interviews, mentoring schemes and simplified applications to help “level the playing field” and “give care-leavers a fair chance to realise their potential”.

Councillor Michael Butler, Sunderland City Council’s portfolio holder for children’s services, child poverty and skills, said: “We know that young people leaving care can face all kinds of additional challenges when they come to enter the world of work, and – as an organisation with a strong enough voice to be able to influence change – we want to urge organisations in the city to consider the ways in which they can remove these barriers and give care-leavers a fair chance to realise their potential.

“The numbers don’t lie, and we can see very clearly that care-leavers are disadvantaged when it comes to accessing education or employment. 

“We have a duty to address this and give every young person the chance to succeed.”

With only 40 per cent of care leavers in Sunderland aged 19-21 in education or employment – significantly below the national average of 54 per cent - TfC is working with major employers such as Gentoo, Sunderland City Council and Education Partnership North East to improve access to training and jobs.

Susan Fulton, executive director of customer, people and engagement at Gentoo, added: “It’s really important to us that we are a diverse and accessible employer and a great place to work for all colleagues. 

“We’re delighted to have made the recommended commitments already and we know that removing these barriers for care leavers will bring us some brilliant new colleagues.” 

As part of its programme, TfC offers funding for tools and clothing, free regional travel and peer support forums, while recognising care experience as a protected characteristic in Sunderland. 

Simon Marshall, chief executive of TfC, added: “It’s wonderful that other organisations are exploring how they can improve access to employment opportunities for people leaving care, and we’re proud to have started this important conversation, and to advocate for care-experienced young people in Sunderland to ensure we level the playing field for them and for generations to come.”

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