Figures published last month showed 30,000 fewer young people out of work, education or training, while evidence from programmes around the country is offering clues about how that decline could be sustained
The number of young people in the UK who are neither working nor learning has dipped back below one million, offering an encouraging shift after several years in which more 16- to 24-year-olds have become detached from work and education.
Figures published by the Office for National Statistics on 27 August estimated that 981,000 young people were not in education, employment or training – commonly described as NEET – between April and June this year, down by 30,000 on the previous three months. The proportion fell from 13.5% to 13%, although it remains slightly higher than a year earlier and the ONS has cautioned against drawing firm conclusions from a single quarter.
Most of the improvement came among young people classed as economically inactive – those who are neither working nor actively looking for work – whose numbers fell by 28,000. The number of unemployed young people who were NEET fell by only 2,000.
There are some encouraging signs elsewhere. The King’s Trust calculates that the number of 18- to 24-year-olds on payroll has increased by around 20,000 since March, even as the wider vacancies market has become tougher.
Richard Rigby, head of UK government affairs at The King’s Trust, cautions that some of that rise can be explained by Britain’s growing population of young adults, but says another factor may be a reduction in economic inactivity.
“Looking beneath the headline figures, some of the increase in youth employment may also reflect a reduction in economic inactivity. In other words, more young people who were previously outside the labour market may be moving into work or actively looking for work,” he tells Positive News.
Evidence from programmes designed specifically to reach those young people is beginning to show what can help. An evaluation of the East Midlands Youth Guarantee Trailblazer found that 74% of participants who had completed one of its programmes had moved into employment, education or training.
Figures published by the Office for National Statistics in late August estimated that 981,000 young people were not in education, employment or training – commonly described as NEET – between April and June this year, down by 30,000 on the previous three months. Image: Miljan Živković
Dr Emma Simpson, principal economist at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, which carried out the evaluation, told Positive News that the interventions producing the greatest impact tended to combine practical individual help with opportunities for young people to build relationships.
“A combination of personalised support and fostering connections with others are common features of the interventions which had the most impact: one-to-one support and guidance to identify barriers, help to overcome them, and to break down goals into manageable steps; programmes which help young people to connect with each other and with people in organisations which might support or employ them.”
Research commissioned as part of the government’s review into young people and work suggests the desire to participate is already there. A survey of 417 young people who were NEET, also published on 27 August, found that 84% wanted to be in employment, education or training. More than half wanted a job, while others wanted to enter higher education, apprenticeships or vocational training.
Many were instead facing combinations of poor health, disability, caring responsibilities, financial pressures and a lack of experience, while 38% had never undertaken paid work.
Helping young people navigate the transition into employment, build confidence and deal with challenges in the first few months can make the difference between getting a job and sustaining one
Rigby says the experience of The King’s Trust, which is delivering the first phase of the Youth Jobs Guarantee in Scotland, is that the support required can vary considerably.
“The most important starting point is recognising that young people are not all in the same place. Some are ready to move straight into work with relatively little support, while others need more intensive help to prepare for, secure and sustain employment. Effective programmes avoid a one-size-fits-all approach.”
“For some, that means practical support such as travel costs, work clothing or equipment. For others, it may mean funding essential qualifications or licences, such as a CSCS card needed to access opportunities in construction.”
Rigby added that ongoing support after somebody starts work can also determine whether they stay there. “Helping young people navigate the transition into employment, build confidence and deal with challenges in the first few months can make the difference between getting a job and sustaining one.”
An evaluation of the East Midlands Youth Guarantee Trailblazer found that 74% of participants who had completed one of its programmes had moved into employment, education or training. Image: Monkeybusinessimages
A similar approach is being tested in Stockport, where a community-led Work & Skills Fund has secured a second year of funding. Local voluntary and community organisations work with people facing barriers including poor mental health, isolation and caring responsibilities, starting with confidence and connection rather than simply job applications. Projects have included a community cafe created by women experiencing unemployment and isolation and a programme helping young people translate difficult life experiences into skills employers can recognise.
Those programmes are operating against a shortage of the jobs through which previous generations often entered the labour market. Work Foundation analysis found that the number of accessible “starter” jobs has fallen by 49% over the past decade, leaving roughly three young people who are NEET for every such vacancy nationally.
Henry Parkes, principal economist at the Institute for Public Policy Research, said when the latest figures were published: “The answer isn’t simply to tell young people to try harder. Where you live can make a huge difference to your chances, and in too many parts of the country there simply aren’t enough suitable first jobs to go around.”
The answer isn’t simply to tell young people to try harder
Government and employers are trying to create more of those first opportunities. Sainsbury’s announced in August that it will provide around 10,000 work experience and employability opportunities over the coming year, while the government’s new Youth Jobs Grant offers employers up to £3,000 when they take on an eligible 18- to 24-year-old who has been looking for work for at least six months.
Young people who have been looking for work for 18 months can meanwhile qualify for the Jobs Guarantee, which provides a fully funded six-month paid job. The first participants started work in August, too late to account for the latest fall in NEET numbers, but the programme offers a significant test of whether providing a real paid job can reconnect people who have spent long periods outside the labour market.
Positive News has also recently met some of the young entrepreneurs breathing new life into Britain’s market stalls, where relatively low start-up costs are allowing people to earn money, develop skills and establish a track record without first persuading an employer to give them their first opportunity.
Simpson says the 30,000 quarterly fall is encouraging, but sustained progress will require wider changes.
“We’d need to see evidence of the kind of systemic change outlined in the Milburn review to be confident that the trend is likely to be reversed,” she says.
Main image: Jacob Lund
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