Young people in parts of Lancashire face fewer than 70 suitable job vacancies for every 1,000 people their age, according to a new study highlighting a stark divide in employment opportunities across Britain.
Research by think tank IPPR found a more than six-fold gap in the number of entry-level vacancies available to 18 to 24-year-olds depending on where they live, with some Lancashire districts lagging well behind the best-performing areas in the country.
While Lancashire avoided the very bottom of the rankings, several areas recorded fewer than 80 suitable vacancies per 1,000 young adults.
Rossendale had the county's lowest figure at 63 vacancies per 1,000 young people, followed by Wyre with 68, Lancaster with 73 and Pendle with 74.
Burnley recorded 79 vacancies per 1,000 young people, while Blackburn with Darwen had 98.
The figures are a long way behind the UK's top-performing areas.
Cotswold topped the national rankings with 288 vacancies per 1,000 young people, followed by Woking (273), Gloucester (260), Tonbridge and Malling (258) and Horsham (250).
IPPR said the findings demonstrated how a young person's chances of finding work can depend heavily on their postcode, with around one suitable vacancy for every four young people in the strongest-performing areas compared with just one for every 22 in the weakest.
The study measured the number of online vacancies considered suitable for young people entering the labour market against the size of the local 18 to 24 population.
Although some parts of Lancashire performed relatively well, a significant gap remains within the county.
Fylde recorded 143 vacancies per 1,000 young people, Blackpool had 135 and Preston 130, placing them among the stronger-performing areas outside the South of England.
Ribble Valley recorded 117 vacancies per 1,000 young adults.
Across Britain, researchers found nine of the 10 best areas for youth job opportunities were in southern England.
The think tank warned that nearly a million young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) risk being left behind unless more opportunities are created in parts of the country where entry-level jobs are scarce.
Henry Parkes, principal economist at IPPR, said: “Too much of the debate about youth unemployment starts from the assumption that the problem lies with the young person.
“Our local data shows just how wrong that is.
There is a more than six-fold gap in the availability of suitable vacancies depending on where you live.
“You cannot solve a shortage of opportunity simply by asking young people to search harder.
We need to create the first rung of the employment ladder in places where it is missing.”
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Avnee Morjaria, associate director at IPPR, added: “A young person's postcode or circumstances should not decide whether they get the chance to build a working life.”
To tackle the issue, IPPR is calling for a new “Work Start” programme to fund jobs in areas with too few entry-level opportunities, reforms to apprenticeships to create more routes into skilled work, and a universal youth employment service offering personalised support and a new youth allowance.
Lancashire vacancies per 1,000 people aged 18-24:
- Fylde: 143
- Blackpool: 135
- Preston: 130
- Ribble Valley: 117
- Blackburn with Darwen: 98
- Burnley: 79
- Pendle: 74
- Lancaster: 73
- Wyre: 68
- Rossendale: 63
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