NatWest Youth Offer to start in Greater Manchester in January
NatWest plans to begin a new Youth Offer in Greater Manchester in January, with an ambition to connect more than 10,000 young people with employment, training or entrepreneurship opportunities over the following two years. A separate pilot is being developed with the East Midlands Combined County Authority, extending the programme’s focus beyond the first region.
The programme is intended to link education, skills development and local employers rather than provide a single standard package everywhere. NatWest plans to work with combined authorities and local partners to shape activity around regional priorities. The two pilots are intended to inform a wider UK roll-out, but neither the eventual geography nor the pace of expansion has been fixed.
Work experience and early-career routes
In Greater Manchester, the offer is expected to include structured work experience and T Level placements at NatWest branches, offices and participating business customers. It will also seek to create clearer local links to apprenticeships, internships, graduate roles and other employment opportunities within the bank. These elements are designed to give participants insight into workplaces and possible career paths, rather than to guarantee a job or a training place.
NatWest has a network of more than 55,000 businesses and founders in Greater Manchester. Polyflor, NorthStone Homes and Permanently Unique Restaurant Group are among the businesses expected to help begin work-experience activity. The bank’s Spinningfields office is also part of the first pilot. The programme will depend on the capacity of participating organisations as well as local demand, so the number and type of opportunities available are still to be developed.
East Midlands pilot remains in development
The East Midlands element has not yet been given a launch date. It is being developed with the regional combined authority following the launch of Generation East Midlands, known as GenEM. That initiative aims to work with employers so young people can have meaningful employer encounters, obtain work experience and better understand industries and routes into them. Practical actions for NatWest’s regional commitment are due to be agreed in the coming weeks.
That distinction matters for young people and employers in the East Midlands. The authority has welcomed the planned pilot, but it is not yet an operating scheme with published places, eligibility rules or a confirmed timetable. Its eventual shape is expected to reflect local priorities and available employer involvement, rather than copy the Greater Manchester model unchanged.
Support for prospective founders
The Youth Offer also includes a nationwide Young Founders Community for people aged 18 to 25 who want to explore entrepreneurship or develop an existing business idea. It is due to launch in January through NatWest’s network of 18 Accelerator hubs and digital services. Participants are expected to be able to meet other founders and access mentoring, specialist support, learning opportunities and partner benefits.
Ambition is not a promised outcome
The figure of more than 10,000 is an ambition across the first two years of the programme, not a guaranteed number of jobs, placements or training places. NatWest has stated that the total reached, rollout timetable and geographic coverage will depend on local demand, partner capacity and programme development. The clearest immediate development is therefore the planned January launch in Greater Manchester, while the East Midlands pilot remains at the design stage.
