The Employment and Training of Young People in Rural South West England

Abstract

Abstract Studies of youth employment and training have tended to emphasise the importance of regional differences between labour markets, yet to date there have been few studies of rural areas. Rural areas themselves differ considerably depending upon the nature of the local geography and economy. Thus, the South West of England represents a particular set of characteristics which affect the post‐school transitions of young people. The introduction of national youth training has had a profound impact upon the youth labour market which has been thoroughly studied in other contexts. This paper explores the impact of youth training schemes on the rural labour market and seeks to describe some aspects of the rural labour market of the South West which are distinctive for the transition from school to work. The material presented here is based upon quantitative surveys and qualitative interviews with employers, Managing Agents and school leavers in a rural labour market during the period 1988‐1990. The studies...