25/03/2026
By John Baumback FIEP, Group CEO, Seetec
When I joined Seetec as a 16-year-old apprentice in 1984, I didn’t know where that first step would lead. But someone gave me an opportunity, and that opportunity changed everything. It shaped my future and taught me a lesson I have carried throughout my career: when you give a young person a chance, they often achieve far more than they thought possible.
That belief still drives me today. It is why I think helping young people into work or training is everybody’s business. Not only because it is the right thing to do, but because it is essential for a strong workforce, a healthier economy and thriving communities.
Last year, Seetec supported more than 50,000 young people to earn or learn. Every one of them had their own story, their own barriers and their own ambitions. And the need for this support is growing.
A Turning Point for Youth Opportunity in the UK
Youth unemployment and inactivity have been rising, and almost one million young people are currently not earning or learning.
In response, the UK government has announced the most significant set of reforms to apprenticeships and early career support in more than a decade. These include:
- A £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds on Universal Credit for at least six months
- A £2,000 apprenticeship incentive for employers taking on apprentices aged 16–24, part of a target to create 50,000 new apprenticeships
- Full funding of apprenticeship training costs for under 25s at smaller businesses, removing previous co-investment requirements
- An expanded Jobs Guarantee offering six-month paid roles to 18–24-year-olds at risk of long-term unemployment, creating more than 35,000 new placements
- New short and flexible “apprenticeship units” in areas such as AI, engineering, solar energy and electric vehicle charging, rolling out from April 2026
Together, these measures are part of a wider £1bn to £2.5bn package designed to unlock up to 200,000 job and apprenticeship opportunities and support almost one million young people into work or training.
This is a pivotal moment. And it is one that calls for leadership and action from all of us from the front-line to the board room – making Seetec, as an employee-owned organisation, ideally positioned to build on our existing impact for the next-generation.
Apprenticeships Still Change Lives, and I’m Living Proof
Since April 2025, more than 60% of learners joining our sector specialist apprenticeship programmes have been aged 16 to 24. These routes are developed with employers like DHL, opening opportunities in logistics, freight forwarding and other high demand sectors.
These pathways matter because they are:
- Debt free
- Practical
- Connected to real labour market needs
- Designed around future jobs
- Proven to lead to long term careers
When I look back at my own apprenticeship, I know exactly how life-changing a single opportunity can be. I would not be where I am today without it.
Employee Ownership Helps Us Meet Young People Where They Are
At Seetec, our colleagues are also our owners. This shapes everything we do. Ownership builds pride, responsibility and a commitment to getting things right for the people we support.
It means our employment advisers, apprenticeship tutors and career specialists have a real say in how services are designed. They use their local insight and lived-experience to shape programmes that actually reflect the needs of young people and employers in their communities.
As our employee trustee director, Holly Dono, puts it:
“Employee ownership amplifies our voice and connects the people who support young people every day with decisions at the highest level.”
This is exactly the kind of locally driven, insight led approach the government is now trying to achieve through new skills pilots with regional leaders.
It is also one of the reasons our model works.
Supporting Young People Who Face the Biggest Barriers
Some young people need specialist support to get into work. Neurodivergent young people, for example, often face unseen challenges.
In our Community Interest Company, Pluss, there are stories to be proud of every day – of lives transformed by belief and belonging. Last year, colleague and employee owner, Andrea Meade, won the national Superstar Support Worker award for her exceptional person-centred support for neurodivergent young people in Devon, helping them build confidence, independence and entry paths for long-term employment
A Year of Impact Worth Sharing
Our Seetec annual review 2025/26 highlights the breadth of the expert work delivered by our employee owners. It shares the stories, the data and the impact from across the UK and Ireland. It also captures the challenges ahead and how a community connected, employee-owned organisation like ours is uniquely positioned to respond.
If you want to understand how we are supporting people, employers and places to grow together, I encourage you to take a look.
Youth Opportunity is Everybody’s Business
I often think about my 16-year-old self. Nervous. Unsure but full of potential I didn’t yet understand. When an employer believed in me, it changed the course of my life.
Young people today deserve the same belief and the same opportunity. When we help them earn or learn, we strengthen our workforce, support our communities, and build a better, fairer future for the UK.
That is why supporting young people is not only a national priority, it’s everybody’s business. And as an employee-owned organisation rooted in our communities, Seetec, alongside the thousands of inclusive, future-looking employers we partner with, will be at the very heart of the transformation.
If you’d like to explore more, our 2025/26 annual review is available to read here.