22-09-2006
Young people lack home improvement skills
Britain's young people are largely unable to carry out their own home improvements, relying instead on tradesmen to do even the simplest of tasks for them.
According to a YouGov poll, today's young adults spend over £1,700 every year employing tradesmen to carry out jobs that their parents' generations would have managed themselves.
Of the 2,294 young adults questioned during the survey, half claimed to be unable to wallpaper a room, compared to just a quarter of over 50 year-olds.
A quarter admitted that they are unable to sew a hem or wire a plug, whereas only 14 per cent of over-fifties are unable to sew and just six per cent are unable to wire a plug.
Nearly half of under 30 year-olds cannot bleed a radiator and a third are unable to block a drain.
Carmel McCarthy, a spokesperson for Direct Line Home Response 24, said: "It's surprising to see how many skills that were commonplace a generation ago, such as wallpapering, needlework and household maintenance, appear to have fallen out of favour."
She added that, while calling in tradesmen to carry out basic domestic repairs might be expensive, it could be dangerous to attempt to deal with things yourself unless you have the right skills.
