The double Olympic champion was speaking at an event, organised by Morgan Hunt as part of its two-year partnership in sponsoring Dame Kelly Holmes Legacy Trust’s ’Get On Track’ programme. Get On Track helps vulnerable young people into volunteering, work placements and employment opportunities.

Holmes told Morgan Hunt consultants that their mentoring skills would be invaluable in helping NEETs in writing CVs for job applications, as well as offering interview technique tips.

Consultants were invited to volunteer for one of three recruitment stages. The first stage is engagement, where NEETs gain developmental skills preparing them for the workplace, while the second stage matches the NEET’s skills with the right job. The third stage gets businesses on board so that young people can find meaningful employment.

Gavin Megnauth, head of corporate social responsibility at Morgan Hunt, told Recruiter that the firm selects consultants who are confident, energetic and not much older than the NEET, so that common ground and a strong relationship may be formed.

Megnauth adds that 50 people, including a reformed car thief, have already gone through the programme, with another 75 NEETs planned this year in Southwark, Reading and Manchester.

“We found a former car thief a work placement in the Honda F1 team, where he really focused his energy and talent and contributed to the team. Experience shows that if you give young people an opportunity that is alien to their day-to-day world but is motivational, then all that ’pent up’ and under-utilised drive, energy and creativity can come gushing-out and they exceed all expectations of the client - and indeed the candidate.”