THREE County Durham schools are taking part in a pilot scheme designed to prepare young people for the world of work.

The schools, with nine others across the country, will be working with the national charity Changemakers on a new approach to developing the enterprise capability of young people.

Ferryhill Business and Enterprise College, Staindrop Comprehensive and Deerness Valley Comprehensive, in Ushaw Moor, have won funding from the Department for Education and Skills as national pathfinders to develop and test the approach over two years.

From 2005, every secondary school will be expected to offer five days of enterprise learning to every pupil. The pilot project is seen as an important step towards that.

The social enterprise approach enables each young person to have the experience of designing and managing their own project to improve their community.

They can then review the learning skills they gain from that experience with an employer or someone from an area of work in which they have an interest for the future.

Malcolm Groves, deputy chief executive of Changemakers, said: "Much Changemakers work has been pioneered in the area in the past and we are very pleased that the link is now strengthened further through this significant national initiative."

Ann Nelson, associate inspector for citizenship with Durham County Council, the local education authority, said: "We would be very interested to hear from any employers or self-employed people who would be interested in contributing help to young people taking part in this project."