In July, along with leaders in the business world from organisations such as Starbucks, BskyB and the Discovery channel, I took the role of a dragon involved in judging the 'Dragons Den' competition at West Thames College organised by National Citizen Service.
The competition, like the popular TV show, was an opportunity for young people in Hounslow to pitch business campaigns to a team of experts who would choose the best and give them support and advice in the coming months to implement and grow their ideas.
The National Citizen Service is a government backed programme which helps to promote and improve the skills and passions of young people currently trying to enter the world of work. This service is needed more than ever as the uncertain economy creates difficult entry pathways and challenges for young people.
As we deliberated over campaign presentations and how to support the teams taking them forward in the autumn, we were struck by the huge disconnect between how young people felt about their lives, and how they felt they were perceived. It is absolutely clear to me that we have an enormous job to do as a community and as a society to focus our attention on improving the experience of young people growing up today in the world that we have created for them.
I came away from the event feeling that we have not yet even scratched the surface of tackling seriously the issues young people face, whether at home, in school, through peer pressure, through online bullying, and then as they make sense of their own experience in an incredibly fast changing world. Despite the challenges, what came through during the event and the work of the NCS was a growing team spirit between the young people and a demonstrable impact in confidence and self-esteem of developing civic leadership.
The issue of young people's ambitions, aspirations and welfare are a core part of what one nation Labour stands for and why we believe there needs to be much greater support for young people whether through careers advice and guidance or measures to support employment.
I look forward to working with the teams as they take forward their campaigns the autumn. I was incredibly proud of them and wish all those young people across Hounslow taking part in NCS programmes this summer every success. Often we talk of the wisdom of our elders. But sometimes it's worth stopping for a minute and seeing how much we also have to learn from the younger generation.
