Youth unemployment is perhaps the primary blemish upon the face of the UK job scene at present, and there are many new schemes being piloted in an attempt to rectify this unwanted situation. However, there are always examples that are contrary to any prevailing trend, and recently the news has been showcasing those young individuals who are making global headlines by setting up their own companies.

The BBC News website has published one such report, relating the story of how a 15 year old from California is actually running his own company as we speak. Thomas Suarez is largely self-taught in terms of his skill set, although he relies upon advice from his parents to navigate certain business details, but the fact that he is working on patent-pending innovations at such a young age is impressive, to say the least. Suarez was already at the head of his own company when he was 11 years old, and such a fact flies in the face of what we might think of as ‘the normal situation’.

In terms of contracting, the vast majority of UK professionals are fairly advanced in age, as the experience that has been gained by such individuals stands them in good stead in the current competitive job market. Although younger UK graduates have found that contracting is a viable career path following their years in academic study, the general trend is that most freelancers tend to conform to a pattern of older workers who have left previous vocations to pursue more lucrative self-employment.

However, what the story of Thomas Suarez shows is that youth is no barrier to success in the world of business, as with the right skills and the right support in place you can excel in your field, whatever your age might be. Here at ICS, we are a specialist team of contractor accountants who provide tailored services for all those who earn their living through contracting, and we’re strongly in favour of the idea that contracting is a suitable profession for all, no matter what age you are.

Resources like our Contracting Guides are ideal sources of information for young contractors to make use of when they are starting out, and our contractor services are similarly designed to assist you; if you’re a young contractor, then we know that you’re unlikely to be enthused by the idea of administration and accounting, so we’ll take the stress out of it for you! To find out more, feel free to contact us by calling 0800 195 3750 or emailing our professional team on info@icsuk.com