Creating Opportunities and Building Confidence: A Look Back at Our Summer Jobs Programme
This August, we were delighted to welcome 20 young people to take part in the Summer Jobs Programme, a six-week paid work experience scheme designed to build confidence in young people who are at risk of violence. By offering structured, supported – and importantly, paid - work opportunities, the programme aimed to empower young people to take positive steps towards their future.
How it worked
The 2025 Summer Jobs Programme, supported by UK Youth, Youth Endowment Fund and Youth Futures Foundation, was modelled on a programme that had been successful in the US and trialled in the UK for the first time in 2024. You can read more about the programme’s theory of change and evaluation here.
Young people who met the programme criteria were referred into the programme by social workers, probation workers, youth workers and by self-referral. Those who secured a place on the programme were then invited to Star House for a welcoming introduction week where they could get to know each other, the Employability Coaches, and the employers – and start to prepare for their work placement.
The first step was helping them to understand how valuable work experience can be when applying for future roles. From there, the team worked hard to match each young person with placements that aligned with their interests and aspirations, ensuring the experience was both relevant and rewarding.
2025 Sheffield Summer Jobs Programme Employers:
The preparation week gave young people time to build confidence, strengthen key skills and feel ready to take on the workplace. When we spoke with some of the young people, they told us their goals included building confidence, meeting new people and developing meaningful connections, earning money, and gaining essential experience. Many shared that a lack of previous experience had been a barrier when applying for jobs, as most roles required it. They also told us how supportive Sheffield Futures staff had been in helping them to feel more prepared and confident about entering the workplace.
Throughout the six weeks of work experience, our team kept in regular contact with the young people, with weekly check-ins and an in-person visit every fortnight. These conversations provided a space to talk openly about their experiences, celebrate successes and address any challenges that came up.
When the programme ended, our Employability Coaches continued to help the young people to update their CVs, complete job applications and practice for interviews. Most of the young people who took part were school leavers not currently in education, employment or training. We’re incredibly proud that at least 12 of them so far have since moved into education, employment or training opportunities.
We wrapped up the programme with a celebration event, where each participant received a certificate recognising their hard work. The young people told us that the experience had made a real difference to their confidence and self-esteem. We’re so proud of every young person who took part and excited to see what they do next.
Our Reflections
The impact of paid work experience for young people cannot be underestimated. We hear regularly from our young people about the challenges they face securing interviews, let alone jobs, due to lack of experience on their CV. Meanwhile, most work experience schemes are unpaid, making them largely inaccessible to young people who don’t have financial support elsewhere, including young people who have grown up in poverty and for whom getting a good start in their career could make all the difference. This programme, as well as empowering young people to take their first step into work, also aims to break the cycle of generational unemployment and poverty that affects many households across Sheffield and South Yorkshire.
What particularly stood out for us was the difference that support from the Employability Coaches made – not just for the young people, but for the employers as well. Many of the employers were charities and social enterprises with limited resources themselves, meaning that they may have otherwise struggled to support a young person entering the workplace for the first time. Young people at risk of violence are also likely to face additional barriers that employers might not feel equipped to address. By having Sheffield Futures Employability Coaches on hand, the employers were able to seek guidance and support which enabled them to give the young people a more inclusive experience.
What’s Next?
We are advocating for further funding to continue this programme in 2026 and offer the opportunity to more young people in Sheffield. In the meantime, our Employability Team are working hard supporting young people who are struggling to sustain employment, education or training due to mental health barriers. We are also preparing to launch our new pilot NextGen Youth Consultancy service, empowering young people to advise local business leaders on how to improve their policies and procedures to become more youth-friendly and inclusive workplaces.