Youth in Focus

The context and backdrop of 2020 & 2021 will undeniably have a profound and lasting effect on the futures of many people. Particularly young people, many of which have been denied the ‘typical’ experiences enjoyed by generations before them. It is no surprise students priorities are shifting, particularly decisions about careers and the workplace.

We wanted to dig a little deeper to understand to what extent young people perceive that their background has an impact or influence on various aspects of their lives. And our research clearly shows that it has a huge influence on the experiences they have.

Undoubtedly, the turbulent times which we live in have had a significant influence on the lives of our young people – and against this backdrop, we also wanted to understand what young people are really concerned about right now.

The last 18 months have been like no other in living history and we know it’s taken its toll on our young people. So, with a prospect of heading back to some semblance of ‘normality’ (whatever that might actually look like), we wanted to see how young people are feeling in the Summer of 2021.

At SMRS, we’re not skilled at manufacturing PPE or delivering respiratory care, but we do excel in connecting and communicating with people. So, in Spring 2020 we created a Living in Lockdown Project, where a panel of 16-25 year olds shared their thoughts, opinions, hopes and fears about life right now and the impact it was having on their future.

Want to know more about future apprentices? How they think, what drives their decisions, their biggest worries and their wildest dreams? So did we in Summer 2020.