Young jobseekers get only 10 minutes of help a week to find work
Young jobseekers are receiving just 10 minutes of support a week from overstretched work coaches despite Government plans to get them back into employment, the author of a major review into youth inactivity has warned.
The number of “people not in employment, education or training (NEETs)” has been rising since Covid lockdowns ended in 2021. According to the latest government data, there are 957,000 young NEETs, equating to more than one in eight of all 16- to 24-year-olds in England.
Alan Milburn, the Government’s youth unemployment adviser and a former health secretary under Tony Blair, told The i Paper he believes young people who want to work are being let down by a welfare system which is not built to support them.
Two charged after bystander fatally shot outside Sheffield bar
The people choosing ‘half-retirement’ in their 50s and 60s
The seaside hotspots where house prices are growing fastest
How a pill could help blood cancer patients live well for longer
Everything you need to know as Iran-US deal ‘close’
Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket explodes before launch
The 205 times Putin has sent shadow ships into UK waters
Five dangerous mistakes parents make at home, by a baby-proofing expert
Two charged after bystander fatally shot outside Sheffield bar
A man and a woman have been charged in connection with the death of a mother-of-one who was shot outside a bar in Sheffield, police said.
Shanice Brookes, 30, was found with serious injuries outside the bar One Four One in the early hours of Bank Holiday Monday. She later died in hospital.South Yorkshire Police said the charity worker was “an innocent bystander” on a night out. Her family said she was working for young adult care charity, Zest, while studying for a university degree.
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Jemele Rhone, 30, has been charged with murder, while Deiryen Dyce, 32, has been charged with assisting an offender. The pair are due to appear at Sheffield Magistrates’ Court.
Rhone is also charged with possession of a firearm and possession of criminal property, police said. Dyce is also charged with possession of ammunition, possession of drugs with intent to supply and possession of criminal property.
‘Truly one of a kind’
Detective Chief Inspector, Andy Knowles, of South Yorkshire Police, said: “Shanice was an entirely innocent bystander who should’ve been able to enjoy a night out in our city without the fear that she wouldn’t come home safely.”He added that her family and young son, “now face the harrowing reality that they will never get to see her again”.Shanice’s family described her as “truly one of a kind” and said she had the “biggest heart and the kind of energy you could never forget”.
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The people choosing ‘half-retirement’ in their 50s and 60s
For generations, retirement was seen as the reward at the end of working life. Put money into a pension, pay off the mortgage, stop working in your 60s and finally relax.But a growing number of older Britons are quietly rewriting the script and opting for what has become known as “half-retirement”.
This so-called “half-retirement” is when someone continues to work part-time, taking on flexible side jobs or reshaping their career around their lifestyle rather than ambition.
Some are doing it because the cost of living has made retirement more expensive, and others want extra money for travel, helping children financially, or simply maintaining a comfortable lifestyle.
David Samuel, 59, falls into this category
His mortgage is paid off, his children are grown up and married, and he has a considerable £300,000 nest egg to get him through his golden years. But he doesn’t plan on retiring.
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Despite technically being in a position where I could begin winding down towards a more traditional retirement, I have no desire to stop… Instead, I believe I have discovered something better – half-retirement. David Samuel, 59, told the i paper
Despite technically being in a position where I could begin winding down towards a more traditional retirement, I have no desire to stop… Instead, I believe I have discovered something better – half-retirement.
For David, this means working 20 hours a week at his business, which coaches other business owners. While he has largely handed over the reins, he now focuses more on working directly with his clients.
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And he’s not alone…
According to figures from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), 10 per cent of working adults aged between 40 and 75 are semi-retired.
Caroline and Murray Sims, both 65, are also among those finding new ways to make retirement income stretch further, by working part-time.
The role involves caring for homeowners’ properties and pets while they are away, and it can earn people up to £150 a week alongside food and travel allowances, Caroline said.
'We quit our jobs to travel and pet sit – we can’t imagine a 9-to-5 again'
The seaside hotspots where house prices are growing fastest
Coastal towns in Merseyside and Wales are rising coastal hotspots where house prices are climbing the fastest – and outpacing the rest of the UK, according to new analysis from Rightmove.
To be beside the seaside…
House buyers are increasingly flocking to the seaside, which has ticked up local property prices.
Bootle in Merseyside tops the list, with data showing that the average asking price has jumped 11 per cent compared with last year.
That said, house prices in the coastal town remain well below the national average at £141,680.
Another Merseyside hotspot, Crosby, was second fastest – growing with house prices up by 9 per cent to an average of £330,900.
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Several Welsh towns have also seen some of the biggest jumps in house prices along the coast. The cost of a home in Penarth, near to the capital Cardiff, was up by 8 per cent to an average of £433,091– sitting well above the national UK average of £378,304, according to Rightmove.
Average asking prices are currently 0.3 per cent lower in Britain compared with last year, but several seaside locations are defying this dip.
Top 5 seaside locations with the highest year-on-year house price growth
1Bootle, Merseyside, up 11 per cent to £141,680.
2Crosby, Merseyside, up 9 per cent to £330,900.
3Penarth, South Glamorgan, Wales, up 8 per cent to £433,081.
4Llantwit Major, South Glamorgan, Wales, up 8 per cent tto £340,033.
5Llanelli, Carmarthenshire, Wales, up 7 per cent to £201,570.
Top growers still dwarfed by southern British towns
The seaside towns with the highest year-on-year growth remain dwarfed by some of the more sought after areas down south. The average price of a home in Sandbanks, Dorset – the most expensive seaside town in Britain – is £1,119,945, followed by Canford Cliffs, Dorset, at £1,045,533.
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Adding new pill could help incurable blood cancer patients live well for longer
A new once-daily pill could help patients with a with an incurable blood cancer live longer without the disease getting worse, according to researchers.A trial found that patients on the new treatment lived more than twice as long without their cancer progressing.
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Every year, about 6,200 people in the UK are diagnosed with multiple myeloma, a type of blood cancer that develops from abnormal plasma cells in bone marrow.But there are few options for patients whose multiple myeloma has returned or stopped responding to standard treatments.
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A closer look at the detail
But US researchers, who presented their findings at the American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago, found that adding a new once-daily pill to a combination of drugs already used on the NHS could help patients live well for longer.
The trial to test the the triplet therapy – which included the new treatment mezigdomide – included 479 people with relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma.
What difference does it make?
Some 288 patients were given the new triplet drug of mezigdomide, carfilzomib, and dexamethasone, while 191 had just carfilzomib and dexamethasone.After a follow-up period, those in the mezigdomide group lived for a median of 18 months without their disease progressing. That is more than double the 8.3 months for the group given the two-drug combination.
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How does it work?
Mezigdomide works by attaching to a specific protein in the body.
It then pulls in all the disease-causing proteins – like a magnet, and degrades them.
By wiping out these cancer-fuelling proteins, the drug also stimulates the immune system to attack and kill remaining cancer cells.
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There are several pivotal studies with mezigdomide…Its ability to reverse immune exhaustion and enhance immune activity makes it an ideal partner to current immunotherapies as well as other novel oral agents, and numerous trials are now under way. Paul Richardson, director of clinical research at the Jerome Lipper Multiple Myeloma Centre at Dana-Farber
There are several pivotal studies with mezigdomide…Its ability to reverse immune exhaustion and enhance immune activity makes it an ideal partner to current immunotherapies as well as other novel oral agents, and numerous trials are now under way.
What you need to know as Iran-US deal ‘close’
A deal agreed by Iranian and US negotiators is reportedly awaiting sign-off from Donald Trump after three months of war.Here is everything you need to know.
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If signed, the deal would extend a ceasefire, end the US blockade in the Strait of Hormuz, and start negotiations over Tehran’s nuclear programme. It may also potentially end sanctions on Iran, too. But there has been some “back and forth on a couple of language points”, according to reports.
The US Treasury Secretary refused to confirm reports of the deal at the latest White House press briefing.
Iranian media said the text of a potential memorandum has not been confirmed.
Vice President JD Vance later told reporters there was a tentative agreement, but it was unclear if Trump would approve it.
It followed the US and Iran attacking each other again this week, raising concerns about the effectiveness of any diplomatic solution.
What has Vance said?
In the first senior US reaction to the reports, Vance told reporters that the US is “not there yet” regarding a deal with Iran. The Vice President said, however, that both sides were close to an agreement.
He added that the US is in a position where it could substantially set back Tehran’s nuclear programme. His comments follow a report from Axios that US and Iranian negotiators have reached an agreement on a 60-day memorandum of understanding.
What the reported deal contains
Shipping through the Strait of Hormuz will be “unrestricted” and without tolls. Iran will remove all mines within 30 days.
The US will lift its blockade of Iranian ports to commercial vessels.
Iran will commit not to pursue a nuclear weapon.
The US commits to discussing sanctions relief and the release of frozen Iranian assets.
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@theipaper A rare albino buffalo in Bangladesh, nicknamed “Donald Trump” for its distinctive blond tuft, has been spared from the Eid al-Adha sacrifice after a last-minute government intervention, and relocated the animal to Bangladesh National Zoo. The government refunded the new owner, and the animal now lives in a fenced enclosure at the capital’s main zoo. donaldtrump bangladesh buffalo ♬ original sound – The i Paper – The i Paper
A rare albino buffalo in Bangladesh, nicknamed “Donald Trump” for its distinctive blond tuft, has been spared from the Eid al-Adha sacrifice after a last-minute government intervention, and relocated the animal to Bangladesh National Zoo. The government refunded the new owner, and the animal now lives in a fenced enclosure at the capital’s main zoo. donaldtrump bangladesh buffalo
What we know as Jeff Bezos’ rocket explodes on launchpad
An unmanned rocket from Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin company dramatically exploded on the launchpad during a test on Friday.Video posted by NASASpaceflight, a YouTube channel that livestreams launches from Florida, showed the New Glenn rocket igniting on the pad at about 9pm local time (3am BST on Friday) before erupting into a massive fireball that billowed skyward.
A hotfire test is where a rocket engine is fired up while anchored to the ground.
But an “anomaly” caused the rocket to explode sending a plume of flames and smoke into the air.
Bezos said it was “too early to know the root cause” of the incident.
Rocket explosions are a common part of the aerospace industry’s development process – although they are costly.
Blue spiral spotted in UK skies 'caused by Space X rocket launch'
Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets Jared Isaacman, NASA ADMINISTRATOR
Spaceflight is unforgiving, and developing new heavy-lift launch capability is extraordinarily difficult. We will work with our partners to support a thorough investigation of this anomaly, assess near-term mission impacts, and get back to launching rockets
What is the New Glenn rocket?
Blue Origin had been preparing the New Glenn rocket to launch 48 Amazon Leo satellites into low-Earth orbit, part of efforts to build a broadband constellation to rival Elon Musk’s Starlink network.
Blue Origin has spent billions of dollars and roughly a decade developing New Glenn, a rocket 29-stories high with a reusable first stage meant to compete with SpaceX’s Falcon fleet and its more powerful Starship.
How Putin continues to send ships into UK waters
More than 200 sanctioned Russian tankers have sailed through UK waters since Sir Keir Starmer announced new powers to seize “shadow fleet” ships, The i Paper can reveal.Earlier this year, Starmer said the UK would target vessels sailing under false flags to evade sanctions, arguing that Vladimir Putin “should be in no doubt” that Britain would fight against the illicit network.
At least 205 sanctioned tankers have sailed through the UK’s 200-mile exclusive economic zone (EEZ) since the announcement, data shows. Of those, 84 entered Britain’s territorial waters. This comes as ship owners and operators deliberately damaging undersea internet cables around Britain could face jail under new laws.
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Threat of undersea attacks
Existing UK legislation for interfering with communications cables carries fines of just £1,000, unless it can be proven that it was foreign sabotage.
Ministers warn that these laws are decades out of date.
Such attacks leave the country vulnerable to a nationwide shutdown of the internet, financial system and mobile phone networks.
In January, the UK enshrined new powers to detain sanctioned Russian ships near its waters, and on 25 March, Starmer authorised military personnel to carry out forced boardings.
As a result, a number of sanctioned vessels initially started to avoid traversing the English Channel.
However, despite the threat, no Russian tankers have been seized passing through UK waters.
Russian naval vessels return
Vessels have returned to the international passage off Britain’s southern coast, often accompanied by Russian naval vessels. On Thursday, at least six shadow fleet tankers sailed through the English Channel.
The mistakes parents make at home
Baby-proofing professionals like Al Kola from Baby Safe Steps say there are several mistakes he often sees that are actually more harmful than helpful. He shares the most common ones.
Accidents in the UK
Unintentional injuries in and around the home are a leading cause of preventable death for children under five years.
Every year, more than 67,000 children experience an accident in the kitchen, says the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents.
58,000 children have accidents on the stairs, often where the most serious incidents occur.
The mistakes parents make
The wrong gatePressure gates – gates with a bar along the bottom to keep them fixed in place – shouldn’t be on the stairs as the bar is a trip hazard. You can end up flying down the stairs with your baby.
Not securing furniture Parents tend to assume that kids won’t do XYZ. For example, we might assume they won’t pull on drawers, but they can, and it’s a threat that can land on them.
Don’t leave windows ajar
The window could be pushed open the rest of the way by a toddler of about two years old.
Cameras next to a cot are often on a wire, which means that a child could grab it, take it into their cot and get entangled.
Lock cupboards where you keep cleaning products, batteries, medicine, glassware and potentially tools.
Other things to note
You don’t need to overprepare. If you put edge protectors everywhere, then that child is not going to know what pain is. When they go anywhere else like nursery and do get hurt because they don’t understand it.
The only baby gate brand Al Kola trusts is Baby Dan. “We use them for a few reasons: firstly, safety, secondly, practicality, and then thirdly, they look good. They are the only brand that currently ticks those boxes for most scenarios.”
As Milburn gears up to publish the first part of his government-commissioned report into youth unemployment on Thursday, he said: “There is an argument – a myth – that young people are lazy, that they’re inventing their mental health problems, that they’re a ‘snowflake generation’ – and nothing could be further from the truth.”
“We have seen that some work coaches are managing caseloads of 100 unemployed people, meaning they can’t offer proper tailored support to young people in appointments that last 10 minutes.”
Milburn, who has been travelling around England to meet young people as part of the review, added: “All I see is young people trying. They’re sending in dozens, sometimes hundreds of applications for jobs and receiving literally nothing – not an acknowledgement, not a rejection, not any feedback. It’s the wall of silence that kills their hope.”
Milburn added that Britain’s welfare system contained “so many perverse disincentives which were almost like they’d been designed to discourage people from going into work”.
These could include the fact that housing benefit decreases as a person earns more, which could make it difficult to afford rent.
“The welfare system is managing inactivity rather than reducing it,” Milburn said.
At a Jobcentre Plus in Birmingham, Ian Oakes, a work coach who works in a team that specialises in supporting young NEETs, told The i Paper: “We have around 2,000 youth claimants in our catchment area.”
Security guards are the first people you see as you enter the Jobcentre Plus. Once inside, there are desktop computers for jobseekers and work coaches to sit in numbered booths, which line the enormous, open-plan warehouse-style room.
In Birmingham, the unemployment rate is above the national average of 4.9 per cent at 13.6 per cent, equivalent to 77, 715 claimants.
Zane Cox, 24, has braved street closures for an Aston Villa Parade, which will celebrate the team’s newfound status as Europa League champions, to meet her work coach.
Afterwards, she says she has applied for dozens of hospitality jobs and heard back from just “four or six”.
“I want to work,” Zane says enthusiastically. “I don’t want to be out of work. I am a people person; I thrive being out in the world. I want to meet people and show myself at my best.”
Through the youth specialist team at Birmingham’s Jobcentre Plus, Zane explains that she has done various training courses, including one which saw her “graduate top of the class”, which was run by the major alcohol company Diageo.
“You’d think that having a name like Diageo on my CV would mean something,” Zane says. “I thought…someone would hire me, but nobody responded.”
In addition to such training courses offered by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), there are also apprenticeships. The Government has recently expanded funding for employers who hire young apprentices receiving universal credit via the Youth Guarantee Scheme, which subsidises wages for six months.
There is a scheme called Movement to Work which helps young people gain work experience.
And there are Swaps (Sector-based Work Academy Programme), which offer jobseekers claiming universal credit or jobseeker’s allowance training to learn new skills, then gain work experience, and ultimately secure a guaranteed job interview in just six weeks.
Oakes identifies the problems faced by the young adults he sees as being twofold.
Firstly, he says that “people are leaving school but not being given [careers] support. They’re not seeing career advisers, so they come to us with very little idea of what is out there, what kind of jobs, what kind of training.”
Secondly, Oakes believes the move to digital and anonymous job applications has caused problems. “Most claimants I meet want to work; they just need some guidance,” he says. “It’s about their confidence, too, which we can help build.”
A short time later, 18-year-old jobseeker Rahim is the next to sit down with Oakes. He studied electrical installation at school, but is struggling to get to the level of training required to get into work full-time.
There is one Swap, working with electrical installation on railways, that looks particularly exciting for Rahim, but, sadly, Oakes notes that he would need to be 19 years old to qualify for it due to government funding restrictions. Rahim looks disappointed.
Certain Swaps, including in rail engineering, require young people to be over the age of 19 at the start of the academic year. This is typically due to funding constraints, such as the minimum age requirements applied to government-backed Adult Education Budget courses.
“There aren’t many apprenticeships coming up, I’m afraid”, Oakes says. “Ah, but here’s one in aerospace.”
Rahim will apply for that. But he will need to be able to drive there if he gets the job. And, when he and Ian next meet, they will discuss other training programme options.
As he leaves, Rahim, who is living at home with his mum, says, “I really want to work as an engineer, but it’s difficult to get into and, I think, because I’m younger, there are less options. At least here they help us apply… I think a lot of people don’t know how. Everyone thinks we’re lazy, but we just need some support.”
Oakes says he would like the job centre to be more welcoming and hopes he and his team make it feel more like a “jobs club”.
However, currently just 9 per cent of employers across the country are using job centres to find new employees.
Over the weekend, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden signalled that he wants to reclassify apprenticeships as education so that families no longer lose benefits if a child embarks upon one, as well as exploring more funding to expand Swaps like the one Rahim was ineligible for.
As phase one of his review into youth unemployment concludes, Milburn concludes that a “system reset” is needed.
“The competition [for jobs] is higher,” he says, warning that graduates are “trading down” as there are fewer graduate employment options and making “the labour market more competitive” for everyone.
At the same time, Milburn warns that zero-hour contracts have denigrated the quality of the jobs available for people who don’t go to university, adding: “Young people are caught in this sort of vice-like grip where the quality of jobs has declined, and the quantity of jobs has declined.”