23 Feb 2021

West Midlands youngsters to benefit from global business expertise

tom4-1-1(889868)

Financial services and market intermediary-focused global consulting firm JDX has chosen Birmingham-based Sport 4 Life UK as its charity of the year for 2021.

Under the partnership, JDX is to support Sport 4 Life UK, which provides sports-themed personal development programmes to young people across the West Midlands, by providing key personnel to work with the charity 's beneficiaries.

This will entail the delivery of mock job interviews, workshops and site visits when coronavirus restrictions permit, as part of Sport 4 Life UK 's employability programmes.

With the Prince's Trust Tesco Youth Index finding that 60 per cent of young people feel getting a job is “impossible now ”, business support for youth employment has never been more important.

Of the partnership, Seamus Smith, CEO JDX, said: “We recognise that if we want to improve socio-economic and racial diversity within the financial industry, then we have a responsibility to create opportunities for future talent, wherever it comes from.

“Our local partnerships with organisations such as Sport 4 Life UK are designed to support underprivileged young people by offering mentorships, help with CV writing, job applications, hosting mock interviews, as well as providing young people with more exposure to the industry through field trips and work experience.

“We can all play a part in diversifying the future workforce of the financial industry, and supporting the vital work of Sport 4 Life UK is one of many steps that we are committed to. ”

Sport 4 Life UK founder and CEO Tom Clarke-Forrest (pictured) said: “The pandemic and economic downturn meant that young people have never faced such stark challenges.

“So partnerships with experts like JDX are critical in helping youngsters to develop the skills needed to succeed in the jobs market.

“I 'm truly grateful to the team at JDX for backing Sport 4 Life UK in 2021 and look forward to building our relationship over the coming 12 months for the benefit of West Midlands young people. ”

Despite coronavirus lockdowns preventing face-to-face activities like sports coaching, demand for Sport 4 Life UK 's services continues to grow, with online mentoring now playing a key role in service delivery.

In the year to June 2020, Sport 4 Life UK supported a total of 926 youngsters with on and offline mentoring, qualifications, and training programmes, in addition to structured sports sessions - activities which are all expected to grow in the coming years.