National Grid has committed £5 million to a five-year employability programme intended to help 5,000 young people outside employment, education, or training progress towards sustained work.
The Power Within Employability Fund will support up to 1,000 people annually across the UK, beginning during the first half of 2027.
Participants will be offered practical training, industry-recognised qualifications, mentoring, employability coaching, and direct connections to jobs with National Grid, its suppliers, and other businesses across energy, construction, and infrastructure.
The support will include help obtaining driving licences where transport is a barrier, Construction Skills Certification Scheme cards, CV and interview preparation, communication training, and guidance on workplace expectations.
Specialist employment and skills organisations will deliver the programme, with provision intended to reflect local labour-market requirements and the circumstances of young people furthest from work.
Zoë Yujnovich, chief executive of National Grid, said: “I agree with the Prime Minister that too many young people are being left behind, unable to access the opportunities, skills and support they need to fulfil their potential.”
She added: “As the UK invests in the infrastructure needed for a more secure, more resilient and cleaner energy future, we will help thousands of young people build confidence, gain qualifications and take meaningful steps towards employment.”
The fund follows government proposals to give technical education parity with academic routes and strengthen cooperation between schools, colleges, employers, and local authorities.
National Grid is among the first large employers to make a financial commitment linked directly to those reforms. Its intervention also addresses the workforce demands created by investment in electricity networks, clean energy, engineering, construction, and associated supply chains.
The energy system requires substantial expansion and modernisation as electricity demand grows and new renewable generation connects to the grid. Delivering that work depends on engineers and highly qualified specialists, but also technicians, construction workers, project coordinators, logistics staff, and operational employees.
Many infrastructure roles require certifications, transport, equipment, and experience that can be difficult to obtain without employment. The programme’s combination of practical assistance and qualifications is designed to remove some of those initial barriers.
The £5 million commitment equates to an average of £1,000 for each intended participant across the programme’s lifetime. The effectiveness of that spending will depend on the intensity of support, regional delivery costs, and whether participants progress into stable employment rather than completing short interventions alone.
Employer involvement can improve outcomes by linking courses to vacancies and recognised workplace requirements. Training programmes that operate without direct demand from businesses risk producing qualifications that do not lead to available jobs.
National Grid’s supplier network broadens the potential employment pool. Major infrastructure projects are delivered through contractors and specialist companies, meaning many opportunities sit outside the group’s own payroll.
The programme also responds to the scale of youth economic inactivity. More than one million people aged between 16 and 24 were outside employment, education, or training during the first quarter of 2026.
Long periods outside work during the early stages of a career can affect earnings, confidence, health, and later progression. Barriers vary considerably: some young people require technical training, while others face transport problems, caring responsibilities, limited experience, low confidence, or difficulty navigating recruitment processes.
A national fund will therefore require strong local partnerships. Colleges, councils, charities, employment services, and businesses hold different information about available roles and the support required to make them accessible.
Skills shortages have become a material operational risk for infrastructure investment. Projects can be delayed or become more expensive when qualified labour is scarce, particularly where several large programmes compete for the same people.
National Grid’s initiative will not resolve the national challenge alone. It establishes a model in which an employer contributes direct funding, uses its supply chain, and links social investment to identifiable future workforce requirements.
The first participants are expected to join during the first half of next year. Completion, job-entry, retention, qualification, and regional-outcome data will determine whether the programme creates durable employment routes and can be expanded or replicated by other infrastructure employers.
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