IN BRITAIN, there are enough unemployed young people to fill every football stadium in the Premier League, with almost 200,000 left queuing outside.

Here in the West Midlands, almost 87,000 young people are struggling to find a job. In Birmingham alone, almost 21,000 young people are facing worklessness.

This untapped potential is a tragedy, not only for the young people – but also to our regional economy, which stands to lose millions if we don’t help them into work.

At The Prince’s Trust, we know that young people have the determination and willingness to find jobs, but thousands lack the skills, confidence and opportunities to do so.

Many have struggled at school or grown up without a role model, thinking no-one cares. Often, these young people end up on a downward spiral towards long-term unemployment, drug and alcohol addictions and poverty, struggling to see anything positive in their lives.

Only by re-engaging young people can we hope to reinvigorate Birmingham’s economy and tap into this lost potential.

Young entrepreneurs, in particular, are crucial to fuel our economic recovery. A report published by The Prince’s Trust and Citi Foundation shows that disadvantaged young people in the West Midlands are already boosting the regional economy by more than £3.7 million by setting up their own businesses or finding work through the Trust’s Enterprise Programme.

This is thanks to help from local supporters including the European Regional Development Fund and the European Social Fund. This, alone, is proof that the West Midlands can reap the rewards of economic growth by investing in young people and helping them turn their lives around.

Every day I meet inspirational young people who are determined to turn things around for themselves.