Bristol leaders aim to help youth secure £30k jobs by 2030

The Our City 2030 initiative hopes to give young people better prospects

City leaders pledge that young people in inner-city Bristol will be supported to earn £30k salaries by 2030.

Bristol's mayor and youth charity Babbasa have announced the Our City 2030 initiative to help give young people better prospects.

It is part of Bristol City Council's One City Plan involving public, private and voluntary sectors working together.

Babbasa said the scheme would bring "real change" by helping people to lift themselves above the poverty line.

The charity has been supporting young people from diverse and disadvantaged backgrounds to pursue their professional ambitions since 2013.

The Our City 2030 project aims to target people, aged 16 to 25-years-old living in the Ashley, Lawrence Hill and Easton wards, through social media, referrals and door-to-door canvassing.

They will be given access to career training, mentoring and support from the Prince's Trust and Babbasa for up to 10 years.

Further details on the programme have yet to be agreed.

Babbasa founder Poku Osei said the vision aims to create real change across the city

Lashawn Binns, 20, from Bristol, said: "A lot of people around me are worried about how they will find work after Covid because everything is so uncertain."

She said the Babbasa scheme would help "make things feel less daunting".

"It would give people my age the opportunity to be comfortable about their future.

"This is something young people would find hard to achieve by themselves right now, we need as much support as possible," she added.

The project is based on a survey the charity issued during the pandemic to find out what young people needed the most help with.

Babbasa founder Poku Osei said: "This vision aims to create real change across the city, taking individuals and families away from the poverty line.

"Our City 2030 provides Bristol with a unique convening platform for businesses, community partners, education providers, funders, policymakers and young people to directly work together; to increase representation within the workplace, and reduce prejudice and inequality in the city we all love."

Bristol Mayor Marvin Rees said Our City 2030 will make a "positive difference" to Bristol's ethnic minority and economically disadvantaged communities.

"These ambitious goals include addressing inequalities and helping all young people in Bristol to reach their full potential," he said.