THE North-East has been awarded £50,000 to help tackle youth unemployment, it has been announced today (February 27).

The funding has come from Talent Match, an initiative from the Big Lottery Fund (Big), which will use lottery funding to match young people aged 18 to 24 with skills and opportunities that could help them find work.

The North-East partnership, led by the Wise Group, and the Tees Valley partnership, led by The Prince’s Trust, was given the go ahead after presenting their initial plans to Big Lottery Fund chiefs.

The partnership has now been given the green light, as well as £50,000 of development funding, to work up detailed plans.

James Turner, head of the Big Lottery Fund in the North-East, said: “The key to Talent Match is making sure young people have a meaningful influence on how the programme helps them.”

The news comes at a time when youth unemployment figures are rising and a generation of young people are finding it increasingly difficult to secure a job.