Employment charity Tomorrow's People celebrates 25th Anniversary at Glasgow reception

Unemployment in Scotland is rising. The situation is set to worsen considerably over the coming months and there is no doubt that young people particularly will find it increasingly hard to get and keep a job. No one is more conscious of this than national employment charity Tomorrow's People, which since 1984 has been helping marginalised young people in Glasgow to move into work or training or back into education. In fact, the charity has earned so much respect from its work with young people that it has won funding from Inspiring Scotland to expand its successful Working It Out programme to four new areas; Edinburgh, Inverclyde and North and East Ayrshire. *

2009 marks the 25th anniversary of Tomorrow's People, and the charity marked the occasion in style - Glasgow City Chambers hosted a drinks reception in the Satinwood Suite on March 12th - which was well attended by a mix of partner organisations, individual supporters, and representatives of the local councils.

The Working It Out programme is an initiative targeting vulnerable 16-24 year olds who fall into the More Choices More Chances (MCMC) category. The four month programme combines four key elements: training; community projects; job search and personal development and centres around a series of Community Challenges which the young people design, resource and deliver themselves - anything from running a football course for children on a local estate, to painting a local community hall.

Alongside the Community Challenges, the young people on the programme are offered personalised, practical support and guidance to help them develop the skills and confidence they need to overcome the multiple barriers which prevent them from moving forward with their lives and to build a route to self-sufficiency through employment, education or training.

Some 76% of these 'hard to reach' youngsters go on to employment, education or training, which is why the charity is delighted with the new funding as it will enable them to reach even more disaffected young people.

Paul McNeil is a former Tomorrow's People client who had been diagnosed with chronic arthritis, which had forced him to give up his apprenticeship with Glasgow City Council Land Services. Constant pain left him without hope and little ambition. With the help of his Tomorrow's People Employment Adviser, Paul began to see that with the right mind-set he could still achieve something worthwhile. His 'can-do' attitude led to him winning the Tomorrow's People Roger Sterba Award for Achievement Against Adversity in 2007.

Tomorrow's People is a national charity, with a 25-year track record of success in helping people out of long-term unemployment, welfare dependency, and into jobs and self-sufficiency. Since 1984, the charity has helped change the lives of more than 400,000 people across the UK who had been resigned to long-term, even life-long, unemployment.

• Inspiring Scotland is a venture philanthropy organisation currently focusing on investing in charities working with young people aged 16-24 to help improve their life chances. The charity has invested £3.2 million in the 'Working It Out' programme enabling it to expand to more areas in Scotland and to reach more disadvantaged young people.
• Tomorrow's People is also delighted to announce that Maureen McGinn, Chief Executive, Laidlaw Youth Trust, has agreed to become Scottish Patron of the charity.