LATER this month Newlands Junior College (NJC) will open its doors for the first time.

The brainchild of Jim McColl, founder of Clyde Blowers and one of Scotland's most prominent entrepreneurs, NJC is part of an effort to address one of Scotland's thorniest issues - how to ensure that our education system works for all our young people.

This year and next, 30 pupils aged between 14 and 16 will be taught at NJC.

What sets the college apart is its focus on vocational education.

Alongside staple subjects such as Maths, English and Science, those at NJC will be able to take Skills for Work courses in Engineering, Construction, Childcare and Hospitality.

All those who successfully complete their two-year programme will be guaranteed an apprenticeship or a college place.

And I have no doubt that officials will be watching the NJC with interest.

At the moment, our education system leaves behind too many of our young people.

While many school leavers go on to work or further study, in 2012/13, nearly 10% were unemployed. This is damaging for the young people themselves and for wider society.

Quite frankly, we need to do more to ensure that all of Scotland's young people have opportunities to flourish, to maximise their abilities and to thrive in the current labour market.

This requires a greater emphasis on vocational education.

Put simply, if you're 15 and you want to learn a trade, there should be a way to tailor your studies so that you can work towards that. Young people should be able to pursue whatever areas of interest appeal to them most.

A more responsive education system, with greater choice would allow pupils to direct their learning towards their own interests and skills.

In this, vocational education has a key role to play and that is why it is so encouraging to see serious people devoting their time and energy to moving it forward.

At the forefront of this effort, alongside the NJC, is the Commission for Developing Scotland's Young Workforce, headed by Sir Ian Wood.

In June, the Commission published its final report. Among its recommendations was a desire to see closer working between schools, colleges and businesses so that our young people are better prepared for the world of work.

The Scottish Government has welcomed the Wood Commission's findings and now that the referendum has passed, the time has come to take this issue up the agenda.

The hard truth is that while we rightly boast about our world-leading universities, when it comes to vocational education our track record has been a lot less impressive.

Now is the time to rectify that.

Jim McColl and Sir Ian Wood are busy leading the way - let's go with them and take action to ensure that every young person in Scotland has the opportunity to realise their full potential.