How the training schemes of the 1980s helped young people to get a foot on the career ladder

The Youth Opportunity Scheme was the first step towards training up young people and that was followed by the well-know Youth Training Scheme, or YTS, as it was more widely known.

In Blackpool, a group of enterprising local youngsters turned their talents to serving the community to beat the dole queue blues, under the wing of the Youth Opportunity Scheme.

The jobless teenagers built a car park for a local church and developed an extension for a day care centre.

Another successful scheme, bespoke to Blackpool, was a YTS scheme based at Dutton Forshaw.

The car company devised a comprehensive programme to train young people for a variety of jobs in the motor mechanic industry.

Under the scheme, young people were trained for 12 months, including three months off the job and nine months working with a sponsoring garage. Trainees worked under the supervision of experienced instructors and a staggered intake meant all trainees received personal attention. They received an allowance of £25 a week.

In another scheme, the New Training Initiative, young people were given 12 months of intensive training leading to a certificate which would be recognised by employers.

In 1982, more than 1,000 young people joined the scheme on the Fylde coast. It was the first of its kind in the North West.

Elsewhere, industries were encouraged to offer training to young people and centres were set up to provide training opportunities for a wide variety of trades, including engineering and office skills.