Charity Teams Up to Bring Digital Skills to Young

Two Bolton entrepreneurs are doing their bit to bring digital skills to young people.

The campaign is a partnership between The Bolton and Bury Business Award’s Young Person of the Year Saeed Atcha and Business Person of the Year David Ingram.

The duo aim to bridge a ‘serious’ gap in digital skills as MPs warn of a ‘crisis’ in the sector. A report by the Science and Technology Select Committee found that almost 90% of new jobs require digital skills.

Saeed Atcha, who set up Xplode Magazine to provide a platform for young people in Bolton and train 16 to 25-year-olds in employability skills, said:

“Everybody needs digital skills and the fact remains that there is a serious shortage.

“We’re all online, but there is a long-running weakness in the way we as a country approach developing digital skills that make our young people workplace ready.

“I would step future and say let’s bring digital skills to young people to prepare young people for the jobs that do not exist yet.”

Bolton based search, social and web agency, Bring Digital, scooped the first slot of Xplode’s monthly seminars which invites local business leaders and professionals to sit down and mentor the charity’s 12 to 25-year-old volunteers.

Managing Director David Ingram, who delivered the session, said:

“It was a real pleasure to sit and discuss digital marketing with the team and volunteers from Xplode Magazine.

“There’s a growing demand for digital talent in the north west, and it was great to see young people with a genuine passion to equip themselves with these skills and to develop their knowledge further.

There’s a booming sector crying out for creative and digital skills, and it’s happening right here in Greater Manchester. I hope the session helped excite the team and gave them a small glimpse of the fantastic opportunities that could lay ahead for them if they continue to develop these skills.”