A few weeks ago, the Welsh Government received criticism from a number of quarters relating to its flagship project designed to help young people into work, claiming that the majority of beneficiaries would have found work without support.

Since its launch in 2012, almost 12,000 young people have taken up job placements under Jobs Growth Wales.

The scheme sees the Welsh Government pay the salary costs for a young person at National Minimum Wage for a six month period, and pay the employer’s National Insurance contributions, in a bid to tackle youth unemployment.

Yet, an interim evaluation report into the scheme showed that only 27 per cent of those participating in the scheme would not have found work without it.

While the scheme may well have been intended to tackle youth unemployment, I can’t help but feel that its critics are looking at this from the ‘wrong end of the telescope’ as what the scheme has actually done is help SMEs expand their businesses at a time when recessionary pressures and a lack of confidence were pushing people to remain the same size, or even contract.

For an SME, employing even one new member of staff can be a big, and perhaps risky, undertaking. The new member of staff has to make an impact straight away and make a quick return on the bottom line. When applying for a job, this is something that is difficult for a young person to show they could do because of a lack of real experience in the working world. As a result, young people are stuck in a catch 22, often unable to enter the jobs market.

It is easy to claim that the majority of young people who were helped into work by Jobs Growth Wales would have found work anyway, but the recession has impacted on young people’s chances of actually getting a job. Not only are employers less likely to recruit during an economic downturn, but they are also unlikely to take a risk on someone lacking in experience. The scheme addressed this issue and has supported young people to enter the jobs market, as well as providing more general economic benefits. It’s estimated that, once the scheme comes to an end, it will have had a short-term economic impact of up to £24.6m, a sum that is invaluable to the Welsh economy.

At the chamber and the Centre for Business, we have employed four young people through the scheme and, because of the quality of the candidates, we have ended up creating full-time positions for them once the placement finished, positions that we were not necessarily originally looking for. Likewise, as I talk to businesses I have received anecdotal feedback that is hugely positive, suggesting that the scheme has make a difference to both employers and recruits in equal measure.

By mitigating the risk, and indeed the cost, the Welsh Government has enabled business owners to grow their business and in doing so business owners have been able to see the benefit of employing young people.

While we as a Chamber are obliged to be critical of the Welsh Government if they get something wrong, and if it is in the interest of our members, we should be ready to give praise where it is due. This is one such example where the primary purpose of a scheme – to tackle youth unemployment – has had more wide-ranging benefits for the economy as whole.