Young people are the hardest hit by unemployment in East Anglia according to new figures.

Norwich saw a 12 per cent rise in people out of work compared to the same period last year.

Currently there are 4,450 people without a job in the Norfolk city and staggeringly 31 per cent of this number are aged 18 – 24.

The statistics are not much better in the seaside town of Great Yarmouth with youth unemployment totalling 1,020 out of the 3,155.

Dick Palmer, principal at City College Norwich, believes that young people need embrace the educational opportunities available to them in order to best avoid the trap of long-term unemployment.

He told the Norwich Evening News: “As well as considering apprenticeships, I would urge young people to look at improving their skills and gaining relevant work experience through courses offered at their local college.”

And it isn’t all doom and gloom in the region as Structure-flex Ltd, which manufactures plastic curtain sides for lorries, has moved its operations back to Norfolk after being based in the Czech Republic for nine years.