Giving youth a vital foothold on the first rung of the employment ladder has gone high on the agenda of Russell Taylor Group.

Company chairman, Peter Russell, has been invited to give vital careers advice and support as part of an ongoing programme to help young people to become “work-ready”.

Partnering with the Enterprise and Employability team at The Hive Youth Zone in Birkenhead as part of its ‘Get a Job’ project, Peter will be leading a session to give an insight into the world of work and offer real solutions to finding employment.

Work placements and apprenticeships will be among the topics for discussion.

As a founder patron of The Hive, a new £6m youth facility created with a combination of private sector and public funding, Russell Taylor Group sees its role as opening doors of opportunity to a brighter future for its members, now totalling around 5,000.

Opened in April this year, the aim of The Hive is to bring a safe, inspiring and affordable environment to an area with almost 39,000 young people aged between 10 and 19, one which has the second highest concentration of unemployment in disadvantaged communities in England and where child poverty is significantly higher than the national average.

Peter, a keen champion of developing and nurturing young talent within the Russell Taylor organisation, said: “Learning and development is at the heart of this company's ethos and is a key driver of our cultural ethos.

“That’s why I’m looking forward to hearing about the hopes and dreams of these young people and helping to set them on that all-important road to employment.

“All they need is a chance and, given the right direction, can massively contribute to the success of businesses like ours which believe building up their own talent pool to create a loyal and dynamic workforce for the future.”