According to a very successful Northumberland company, there are plenty of great career opportunities in the North-East for young people to stay and work here.
And, Hexham-based Dipsticks Research should know - it's a national market research firm with a 155-strong workforce made up predominantly of under-25s.
Operations director, Lesley Mitchell, is so impressed by the positive impact that this young blood has brought to the business that Dipsticks is offering its assistance to a campaign called Aspire that encourages other businesses to follow their lead.
Aspire, fully backed by Tony Blair, aims to raise the aspirations of young people and highlight the wide range of career opportunities available in the North-East. Research shows that young people in the region have very low self-esteem and, as a consequence, their level of aspiration is also low. Only 40pc of school pupils in the region believe they will be able to get the job they want in the area and only 33pc definitely plan to stay and work here. But business leaders and the organisations behind Aspire firmly believe these perceptions are misplaced.
Lesley says: "It is a great shame that these perceptions exist amongst the region's young people. Our company, and many others operating from the region, are proof that you don't have to be in the capital to work with national companies and big-name brands. We are keen to help Aspire get the message across to young people that the North-East's jobs market has a lot to offer them."
Dipsticks Research's clients include BBC, ITV, Channel 4, EMAP, Yell, Chrysalis Radio and The Telegraph. Aspire is a five-year campaign that aims to tackle the negative attitude among many young people that is damaging the social and economic prospects of the region. The campaign is backed by a support infrastructure that includes the employers and young people, who will work with key partners, including education institutions and careers services. It is a powerful public and private sector partnership, led by business in the form of the CBI and the North East Chamber of Commerce, the Learning and Skills Council,
