In it's latest survey, 'Broke, not Broken', the Prince's Trust has revealed that 26% of young people from deprived homes believe that few or none of their career aspirations are achievable, compared with just 7% of young people from affluent homes.
The survey of more than 2,300 people aged 16-24, also revealed that young people from deprived homes feel that "people like them don't succeed in life", and are significantly less likely to imagine themselves buying a nice house or even finding a job in the future.
The Prince's Trust charity for young unemployed people believes that the UK is developing a "youth underclass" and suggests that those from deprived backgrounds are three times more likely to say that they will "end up on benefits" than their peers who are more fortunate.
Having worked with unemployed young people from deprived homes for a number of years, I am not at all surprised by the findings of this survey. Young people from deprived homes rarely get the parental support that young people from more affluent homes do, and as we know, parental support is key to achievement in education.
A young person can be given amazing support through a range of fantastic initiatives and programmes, but if at the end of the day, they are returning home to a house where their parents and carers are unemployed and have little motivation to change this, then the support given has little impact.
More than one in six of those from poorer homes, surveyed in the 'Broke not Broken' survey, said their family and friends had made fun of them when they talked about finding a good job. How is a young person expected to remain enthused and motivated?
The "aspiration gap" between rich and poor could be better addressed if more support was given to families and communities, rather than individuals, to raise their aspirations, increase their motivation, and work together towards creating better lives.
In a previous job, I set up and ran a weekly 'Job Club' from a youth centre. During this weekly club, unemployed young people would come together for a morning, work on their CV, interview techniques, job application forms and find out about education and apprenticeship opportunities. It gave them a reason to get up in the morning, and provided them with encouragement and motivation, something not all of them got at home.
With the increasing cuts to children and young people's services, I fear that the "aspiration gap" will only get bigger. Support for communities is vital.
"Coming together is a beginning. Keeping together is progress. Working together is success." Henry Ford
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