Following the publication of the latest NEETs (not in employment, education or training) figures for Quarter 4 2010, a Government spokesman said:
“The number of young people who are NEET is still too high. That is why we are committed to supporting all 16- and 17-year-olds to participate in education or training, and to raising the participation age to 18 by 2015.
“Government departments are working closely together to widen the opportunities available to young people aged 16-24 and to ensure that they are provided with the support they need. We will fund 75,000 more adult apprenticeship places than under the previous Government’s plans. From this summer our new Work Programme will provide personalised support and training to help unemployed young people into work”
It is young people who bear the brunt in any recession or downturn, which is why we are so focused on tackling the deficit and promoting growth.”
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Quarter 4 2010 NEETs figures |
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| Age 16 | 5.50% | 5.0% (32,000) | -0.5% pts (-2,000) |
| Age 17 | 7.40% | 6.6% (40,000) | -0.9% pts (-9,000) |
| Age 18 | 14.90% | 13.8% (90,000) | -1.0% pts (-4,000) |
| Age 16-18 | 9.30% | 8.5% (162,000) | -0.7% pts (-15,000) |
| Age 18-24 | 17.10% | 18.1% (866,000) | +1.1% pts (+54,000) |
| Age 19-24 | 17.40% | 18.8% (777,000) | +1.4% pts (+59,000) |
| Age 16-24 | 14.80% | 15.6% (938,000) | +0.8% pts (+43,000) |
It will be interesting to see how the government intend to address this – given they have scrapped EMA. On top of that the Flexible Jobs Fund has gone along with a raft of NEET programes that are about to expire.
Given the number of youths unemployed, you could almost be forgiven for wondering if they have bothered to think about young people