CONFIDENCE is the watchword for young people working to spruce up an area of woodland in Colchester as part of a Prince’s Trust project.

The group of 14 is taking part in one of three 12-week courses run by the charity, which aim to give unemployed young people a chance to gain the skills and qualifications to help them into work or further training.

Through the course they do a community project, a residential activity week and two weeks of work experience.

The current crop are tidying up woods off School Road, in Monkwick, to make them more pleasant and creating an open-air classroom area for children from local schools to learn about the great outdoors.

This week, the group has cleared rubbish, dug and lined a pond to relieve flooding problems and installed benches.

Holly Greenland, 16, said it had been “hard and heavy work” in the hot weather.

“I feel exhausted at the end of the day, but I feel proud about what we’re achieving together,” she said. “We’ve all come on through the course and learnt a lot, but it’s really helped bring on my confidence.”

Holly lives at the YMCA in Colchester and staff there suggested she should do the course.

“I’ve had problems with my family and needed to get away to make a fresh start,” she said.

“In the long term, I want to be a paramedic and I know I need to get my qualifications sorted out to achieve that. Doing this course really shows that I am motivated to do something with my life.”

Giving themselves a headstart in the job market is the aim of most people on the course.

June Heard, 19, from Witham, was frustrated at her inability to get a job and bored at having nothing to do.

“I have been looking for work and there’s not much out there, and I asked my social worker what could I do to make it more likely that I would get a job,” she said. “This is a great opportunity to do some different things and I’ve really gained confidence.

“When I first started, I was very shy, but working with this team has forced me to do things.

“I’m also getting work experience in a care home in Witham, which is what I want to do long term.”

For the project, the team had to pick from suggestions put forward by local people, raise money to do it and organise the materials and equipment they need to do it. June said: “As a team, we thought doing up the woods was the best choice because of the benefit it’s going to bring to local schools and the wider community.

“It’s been really hard work, but we’re all seeing the reward from it.”

The scheme to tidy up the woods had been put forward by ward councillor Dave Harris.

After spending a day working with them, he said: “These young people are a credit to Colchester, and I am in awe of the enthusiasm, ideas and team work they display.”

Jamie Armstrong, from Harwich, feels that taking part in the course has “made me a better candidate for jobs”.

“I’m studying agriculture at Otley College after this course and doing it has really forced me to come out of my shell a bit,” the 17-year-old said.

“I’ve developed project management skills, particularly working with money, and doing this looks good on the CV, rather than just sitting around waiting for a job to land in my lap.”

The schemes in Colchester and Tendring are run by the Essex County Youth Service.

Deputy team leader Vic Porter said he was “very impressed” with the skills, commitment and enthusiasm of the current group.

“All of these young people are unemployed and this is about setting them up to get into college courses or jobs,” he said.

“For every programme we have 70 to 90 people come forward, and they have to get through an interview and taster day before they’re selected.

“Doing this course demonstrates their commitment to bettering themselves and the value of it is really recognised by employers.”