1 in 4 young people in NI believe community don't care about them

The overall stake in society score for young people in Northern Ireland is 61, which is equal to the national score.

A quarter of young people (26%) believe that people in their community do not care about them, and 14% do not believe their actions have an impact in their community.

When asked about positive influences, almost half of young people in Northern Ireland (45%) do not believe they have role models in their community.

The Prince's Trust says this apparent disconnect from their communities could also be having an impact on young people’s aspirations. 

Nationally, the research suggests that, after the age of 20, young people are increasingly less likely to believe they will achieve their dream career.

Thirty per cent of 21 to 25 year-olds who have not achieved their dream career still believe they can do so. However, this falls to just 23% of 26 to 30 year-olds.

25 year old Christine Norrie who's a team leader with the Trust says she felt out of the loop when she was younger. 

However, she says joining a programme helped turned things around for her: 

Christine also says she thinks our sense of community as a whole could be slipping away: 

Mark Dougan, Northern Ireland Director, The Prince’s Trust said: 

“Our research shows that young people in Northern Ireland are dangerously disconnected from their communities in early adulthood, at exactly the point when they should be more invested.

“We make it our mission at The Prince’s Trust to continually raise the aspirations of young people and give them role models to help them achieve in life. We need young people to know that their actions do matter.

“At The Prince’s Trust we are relentlessly practical and positive about how we can turn around young people’s lives, so that they have the chance to succeed.

"To enhance our work we have just launched UK2030, a taskforce that has the express purpose of increasing the opportunities for young people in self-employment and other employment settings.

"Our vision is that by 2030, we live in a country that puts the needs of young people first so that young people can meet the needs of their country.” 

Ian Stuart, CEO HSBC UK said: “Every young person deserves the same chance of being connected to job opportunities regardless of where they live or their background. 

“Positive role models are a key factor in raising aspirations and giving young people the chance to reach their full potential in their careers.

“We’re committed to supporting young people and have been working with The Prince’s Trust since 2012 to help over 33,000 young people get into work, training or education”.

The research comes as the Prince’s Trust UK2030 taskforce begins a series of field trips to determine how government, charities and businesses can support young people in the UK to have a stronger stake in society.

The taskforce, made up of leading industry figures and young people, visited Rhyl in North Wales in September and was in Birmingham on Tuesday 6 November to explore the experiences for young people from different backgrounds when it comes to employment and earning.