YOUNG people in some parts of Gwent have among the worst education and employment prospects in Wales, highlighting what researchers called a 'postcode penalty'.

Torfaen ranks bottom of Wales' 22 local authorities in the Welsh Youth Opportunity Index, a study which compares future prospects for young people in different parts of Wales.

Blaenau Gwent and Caerphilly county borough also rank in the bottom four areas for youth opportunities, according to the study.

Newport ranks 13th overall, and Monmouthshire second – beaten only by the Vale of Glamorgan as the local authority with the best prospects for its young people.

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The Index was created by the Learning and Work Institute Cymru. Its director, David Hagendyk, said opportunities for young people in education and employment were too often "dictated not by their ability and how hard they work, but where they grow up".

He added: "We are seeing the long shadow of industrial decline, with young people growing up in these ‘left-behind’ communities still suffering from poorer opportunities."

The Index measures opportunities based on nine categories: apprenticeships, attainment of nine GCSEs including core subjects, employment rates, higher-education qualifications, level 3 qualifications, NEETs (school leavers not in education, employment or training), net underemployment, and overall opportunities (an average score across all categories).

Here's how each local authority in Gwent fared in the Index, out of Wales' 22 local authorities:

Monmouthshire

Overall rank: 2nd

Highest-placed category: rate of young people aged 16-19 with level 3 qualifications – ranked 1st

Lowest-placed category: net underemployment – ranked 19th

Newport

Overall rank: 13th

Highest-placed category: employment rates for people aged 23-28 – ranked 1st

Lowest-placed category: net underemployment – ranked 22nd

Blaenau Gwent

Overall rank: joint 19th

Highest-placed category: rate of young people aged 16-19 with level 3 qualifications – ranked 5th

Lowest-placed category: higher-education qualifications – ranked 21st

Caerphilly

Overall rank: joint 19th

Highest-placed category: rate of young people aged 16-19 with level 3 qualifications – ranked 11th

Lowest-placed category: attainment of nine GCSEs including core subjects; higher-education qualifications – both ranked 19th

Torfaen

Overall rank: 22nd

Highest-placed category: rate of apprenticeships – ranked 2nd

Lowest-placed category: rate of young people aged 16-19 with level 3 qualifications – ranked 22nd

Mr Hagendyk said the Index showed there needed to be a support for communities where young people had the fewest opportunities.

“A central focus for the Welsh Government over the next two decades must be eliminating these stark divides that scar our country and hold our young people back," he said.

"Today we are calling on all political parties to respond to this challenge and, as we build up to the 2021 elections, set out their plans to end this inequality, including vocational routes for young people, a focus on earlier intervention, and focusing resources on the areas of greatest need.”