Job Information Sheets - now available to download. They include vacancies such as: Health Care, Painter & Decorator, Web Assistant, plus many more.

Shine Week 2009 (6-10 July 2009) invites those who have not yet registered, to join in and be part of a week long high profile national campaign, to celebrate and nurture all forms of talent in all young people.

Summer Uni London – enrolment now open for young people to sign up for free courses throughout the summer. Subjects vary from fashion, music, sport, business skills, film making and many more.

Opportunities at South Thames College - Summer courses for young people aged between 16 and 18 or who have completed year 11 are available at South Thames College for free; all of which lead to recognised qualifications and guarantee a place on a full time course. Click here to find out more.

Free Hair and Beauty treatment day at South Thames Colleges’ Brand New hair and beauty salons - Any young people between the ages of 16-18, that have an interest in this course area can attend, so please inform any clients that may be interested. Click here for more details.

Free apprenticeship in Health and Fitness is being offered by YMCAfit as part of a government funded scheme. Level 2 certificates in gym instruction are being made available to young people aged 16 and over in London who have an interest in fitness instruction. There will be an opportunity to gain work experience in a gym and also to progress onto the Level 3 apprenticeship scheme. Download an information pack here.

Inner London Training is an organisation who provides work-based learning for young people aged 16-24. They offer training in a variety of different Engineering disciplines, Security Systems Installation and Electro Technical apprenticeships. Young people will achieve an NVQ and a Key Skills award upon completion. Find out more here.

Our Space summer camp (9-13 August 2009) the camp will take place in the Lake District. Participants will develop skills in navigation, orienteering, first aid, team building and leadership while acquiring a new perspective on equality and human rights issues. Click to view the flyer and poster.

Raw Canvas is an initiative run by young adults for young adults, at the Tate Modern in London. All Raw Canvas events are free and for anyone aged between 15 - 23. They aim to get young people involved and interested in modern art and going to art galleries outside of education.

Southwark has Talent - auditions for the show are being held between 1-5pm from 27 June - 1 August 2009. For more info and to sign up email info@beoffbeat.org or call 020 7708 6932 / 6931.

Free football training in Kennington 6 week programme running every Monday night 7pm – 8pm, which is designed to build strength, stamina and endurance and taken by an FA trained coach. For more information email the organisers.

Carnival Del Pueblo are offering free workshops from June through to August in costume, masks, float design, painting, history and film. To get involved and book a place see their website.

EPOC Careers and Training is running conferences for young people with an interest in the legal or medical professions. The young people will receive guidance on how to get into university and information, advice and guidance about the career they wish to pursue.

Children's Rights Alliance for England (CRAE) want to contact under-17s who have been named and shamed by the media to help them put together a report. They are looking for children and young people who have been featured in national newspapers, the local press or as part of a local authority publicity campaign in relation to an antisocial behaviour order. Click here for more information or contact Sam Dimmock on 020 7278 8222.

NHS Teen Life Check has been launched to help young people improve their health and well-being. The service, aimed at 12 to 15 year olds, has interactive information and advice on physical activity, nutrition, illegal drugs, sexual health, alcohol and smoking.

Views on climate change - The Department for Children, Schools and Families are running an online survey to find out the views that young people have about climate change. Young people can take the survey here.

Parentline Plus will be running a marketing campaign to make families affected by the recession more aware of the support that is available to them. Funded by the DCSF, the service is free and open 24 hours per day. Request your pack here.

CLC CORE+ IYSS – A NEW INTEGRATED YOUTH SUPPORT DATA SYSTEM FOR CENTRAL LONDON - A programme of demos and awareness sessions will be taking place on 8 and 9 July, please contact Mark Ainsworth on 07739 157 718, for more information and to register on one of these sessions.

Refreshed guide to Additional and Specialist Learning (ASL) selection and advice - The updated ASL guide is now out, and available to download. It has been designed to help learning providers, teachers and careers professionals to make sense of ASL and enable them to advise young people effectively with qualification choices and career progression options.

You London - A new partnership aimed at boosting numbers of adult volunteers for uniformed youth work groups is set to launch in London at Buckingham Palace on Thursday 16 July. It is hoped that by pooling the resources of several organisations, they will be able to fill the gaps in their volunteering teams.

Free registration to the Source - a monthly online resource packed with information, features, and updates for anyone working with young people. To view a copy and register to receive the Source click here.

It's Alright to be Bright! Booklet available to download with details of the National Association for Gifted Children’s week of activities from 19th to 26th September.

Young People Matter: A report and survey of youth volunteering by the Evangelical Alliance has found that 45% of young people aged 14-18 regularly volunteer, the most popular reasons being they want to help people and want to contribute to society. View the full report here.

Nuffield Review of 14-19 Education and Training has published its final report following a six year review of all aspects of the education and training of this age group. The review looks at aims, quality of learning, curriculum, assessment, qualifications, progression to employment, training and higher education, institutional provision, governance, and policy.

Children: Innocent until proven guilty? Penelope Gibbs and Simon Hickson’s report, published by the Prison Reform Trust, informs us about the three quarters of under-18 year olds locked up on remand that do not subsequently receive a jail sentence. There is an argument that young people under the age of 18 should not be held on remand unless they are considered a danger to others or themselves.

Hear by Right in Housing and Communities - In partnership with the Chartered Institute of Housing and the Local Government Association, The National Youth Agency launches a new Hear by Right resource to build children and young people’s participation in shaping housing and community services.

Separated Families Matter has launched a new online resource to support social care professionals working with separated families. The website provides information, ideas, tools and resources and links to other advice organisations.

Safeguarding Children and Young People from Sexual Exploitation - New guidelines have been issued by the DCSF. They are supplementary to, and should be used in conjunction with, the Government’s statutory guidance, Working together to safeguard children.

Rights within Reach: Developing Effective Legal Outreach Services for Young People - A report by Law Centres Federation and Youth Access has found that young people prefer to get help with their problems from a face-to-face service targeted specifically at them and not necessarily through new technology. It also puts forward a blueprint for effective legal advice services for young people.

The Guardian Charity Awards 2009 are now open for nominations. The awards recognise the achievements of small to medium sized UK charities. Winners will receive a cheque for £1,000, a new PC, consultancy support from National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) and a media package from the Media Trust. The deadline for nominations is 31 July 2009.

Department for Children Schools and Families Report 2009 - outlines the progress towards the Government's PSAs and six new Departmental Strategic Objectives which are: secure the wellbeing and health of young people; safeguard the young and vulnerable; achieve world class standards in education; close the gap in achievement for children from disadvantaged backgrounds; ensure young people are achieving their potential; keep young people on the path to success. View the full report here.

21st Century Schools White Paper - The vision for the 21st Century school is set out in the Children’s Plan and affirms that schools have a role in promoting the whole range of outcomes for children. Find out more here.

NEET figure rises to 10.3% an increase for 18-year-olds has resulted in a higher overall NEET figure - Ed Balls, Secretary of State for Children, School and Families, responded to figures which show that a record proportion of 16 to 18-year-olds are in education or training. This reflects the changing labour market and the reduction in unskilled or low skilled jobs, as well as the current economic conditions. Click here to read more.

NEET figures released June 2009 can be found here. Although CLC NEET levels for 16-18 year olds hold steady.

Child poverty bill - The government has published a landmark cross-departmental bill that enshrines in law a duty to eradicate child poverty by 2020. The bill identifies key point as: setting income targets, compiling and revising strategy every three years, establishing a dedicated commission and the publishing annual reports. Local authorities will be involved, working alongside partner organisations to eradicate child poverty by the target date.

Criteria for the new £16.7m Hardship Fund announced - part of the Real Help for Communities action plan is a £16.7m Hardship Fund. This fund will provide grant support to organisations in England delivering front-line services to the most vulnerable and disadvantaged people in society that have been affected by the recession.

A Targeted Support Fund will provide £15.5 million as part of the Real Help for Communities action plan. This money will be made available as funding for small and medium providers in 50 communities most at risk of increased deprivation due to the recession in England. Read more.

Funds of £200 million for 101 projects across England - to bring together children and families services on single sites, has been announced by Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF). Dubbed the Co-location fund the money is backing a number of projects, with between £50,000 and £10 million to deliver investment in joined-up facilities.

Supporting Young Carers - The report claims that councils are not doing enough to identify and support young carers. It recommends that local authorities should conduct investigations to find out how widespread incidents of children caring for their parents are in their locality.

Equality and Human Rights Commission - has published Staying On, a study of 1000 14 to 18 year olds. It claims almost half of girls from a working class background have a profound fear of failure, which is seriously affecting their chances at school and that attitudes of schools towards work and gender have not changed since the 1960s. Girls are still far more likely to do hairdressing, catering and childcare courses, while boys go into mechanics and plumbing.

Government reshuffle – A raft of new ministers have joined the Department for Children, Schools and Families as its ministerial head-count has risen from five to seven. Find out more here.

Working with young people in alternative education - taking place on 11 November 2009. This is a new course recently added to the training offer for this year. For more information on the course, please log in with your username and password to the CLC site, or email CLCTraining@rbkc.gov.uk.

Working in Schools & Colleges - 10 September 2009 if you work in a school/college environment, this course will enhance your knowledge in working positively in these settings. For more information or to book your place, log in with your username and password to the CLC site, or email CLCTraining@rbkc.gov.uk.

Employability: the true story about jobs - 16 September 2009. This course will inform you of what is really available for young people including key information, resources and ways for young people to get into the labour market. For more information or to book your place, log in with your username and password to the CLC site, or email CLCTraining@rbkc.gov.uk.

Delivering to the National IAG Standards - taking place on 22 September 2009 for practitioners. This will help you to increase your understanding and application and monitoring of the standards. For more information or to book your place, log in with your username and password to the CLC site, or email CLCTraining@rbkc.gov.uk.

Training techniques – what works with long term unemployed? - This programme on 14 July 2009, helps the ‘manager as trainer’ to develop their design and delivery skills around knowledge – based learning. The course is aimed at Contractors, voluntary organisations, careers services and Connexions staff. This course is being run by the Centre for Economic & Social Inclusion and is chargeable.

Office for National Statistics data shows 18 to 24 year olds bearing the brunt of unemployment, which is running at 16.1% in this age group. Economists predict there will be more than 1 million unemployed under-25s by September, and in just over a month hundreds of thousands of teenagers getting their A Level results will face the toughest battle for a university place in years.

Even more competition for jobs is anticipated, with employers able to up their entry requirements. Employers have more experienced or qualified candidates to choose from – creating a bottleneck for young people trying to enter the workplace.

In the case of McDonalds, they are receiving more than 2,000 applications per day, offering jobs to around 140.

This 14 to 1 ratio compares favourably to those recently reported in the Sun:

Jobseekers per vacancy

Figures reveal intense competition for jobs, especially lower skilled jobs. McDonalds still have a young workforce (more than half under 21), but in many other sectors young people are finding it increasingly difficult to compete.

Steve Easterbrook suggests that school and college leavers may have to scale back their expectations for now and be more open minded about the labour market. He says that McDonalds have always been comfortable that many people join them as a stepping stone to another job and states that, even in so-called ‘low-skilled’ jobs “you learn valuable disciplines such as timekeeping, customer service and people skills. There is no such thing as a bad job; every job has something to offer”.