Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps Opportunity North East will take to partner with local businesses to improve job prospects for young people across the region.

Opportunity North East is working collaboratively with both Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in the North East - the Tees Valley LEP and North East LEP - to improve career prospects for the region’s young people. Both LEPs already have established networks of business engagement with schools. Every school has a designated Enterprise Advisor, typically a volunteer from the business community, providing support to the school leadership team. These advisors are supported by a network of other business leaders who offer school specific experiences. Following the implementation of the National Career Benchmarks, piloted here in the North East, every child will have a bespoke career plan generating at least 4 meaningful work experiences.

The chairs of both LEPs are members of the Opportunity North East Strategic Board. They are working jointly to develop an enhanced offer of careers and enterprise engagement and support for students in the ONE Vision schools, funded through Opportunity North East. The LEPs will use their extensive industry networks to harness the support of local businesses in developing this offer where it makes sense to do so.