youth tracker newsletter
TRANSCRIPT
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Contents
AssessingtheDownturn 1
ExpertInsights 4
PaulGregg 4
DavidWilletts 5
CouncilsChallenged 6
TheThirdSectorsResponse 7PolicyNewsandAnalysis 8
NewResearch 9
ResearchandStatistics 10
Inbrief 12
Acknowledgements 12
Contactus 12
tracker ReportingonchallengesandsolutionsforyoungpeopleintheUK,duringrecessionandrecovery
YOUTHIssue1,Summer2009
WelcometothefirsteditionoftheYouthTrackeraquarterly
newsletterlookingathowBritainsyoungpeoplearefaringin
therecession,andwhatwecandotosupportthem.
YoungpeoplegrowingupinBritaintodayaremoretechnology-
literatethaneverbefore,andareexposedtoanincreasingly
globalisedworldwith,intheoryatleast,awealthof
opportunities.Butforthoselivinginourmostdisadvantaged
communitiesinparticular,findingapathtoasolidfuturecanbeverychallenging,especiallyinthesedifficulteconomictimes.
Theaimofthisnewsletterseries,therefore,istofocusonwhat
therecessionandtherecoverywhenitcomesmeanforthe
mostdisadvantagedyoungpeople,particularlythosenotin
employment,educationortraining.
Wehavegatherednewinsightsandopinionfromkeyacademics
andpolicyexperts,andprovidearound-upofnewresearch,
statisticsandnewsaboutwhatishappeningontheground.
Ofcourse,wewanttomakesurethattheYouthTrackerbecomesavaluableresourcefor
everyoneworkingwith
youngpeople,sopleaselet
usknowwhatyouthink
seethebackpageforhow
togetintouchwithus.
CareyOppenheim,
Co-director,ipprandShaks
Ghosh,ChiefExecutive,PrivateEquityFoundation
Downloadadditionalcopies
ofthisnewsletteratwww.ippr.org/youthtracker
TheInstituteforPublicPolicyResearchis
theUKsleadingprogressivethinktank,
producingcuttingedgeresearchand
innovativepolicyideasforajust,
democraticandsustainableworld.
www.ippr.org
ThePrivateEquityFoundation(PEF)was
setuptoempoweryoungpeopletoreach
theirfullpotential.Itdoesthisby
investingbothmoneyandexpertisefrom
theprivateequitycommunity,tohelp
excellentcharitiesachieveastep-change
intheirimpact.
www.privateequityfoundation.org
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Althoughthepathofthisrecessionis
difficulttopredict,mostexpertsagreethatyoungpeoplearelikelytobehit
particularlyhard.Around28percentof
theincreaseinunemploymentsincethe
beginningof2008isaccountedforby
youngpeopleaged18to24,although
theyonlymakeupabout14percentof
theworking-agepopulation.
Officialstatisticsshowthat
unemploymentamong18to24year
oldsstoodat17percentinthethree
monthstoApril2009,with695,000
peopleinthisagegroupnowoutof
work.Thisrepresentsariseof185,000
sincethebeginningof2008.Therehas
beenasimilarriseinthenumberof
youngpeoplewhoarenotin
employment,educationortraining(so-
calledNEETs),withfurtherincreases
likelyastherecessioncontinues.
Thesedramaticrisesinunemployment
amongyoungpeopleareparticularly
concerningbecauseyouth
unemploymentintheUKhasremained
highoverthelast12yearswhile
unemploymentoverallwasrelatively
low.Whenemploymentlevelspeakedin
2005,justover10percentof18to24s
wereunemployed,comparedwithjust
under5percentofworking-ageadults.
Participationineducationortraining
among16to17yearoldsisatanall-
timehigh,butamong16and17yearsnotineducationortraining,
unemploymentisparticularlyhigh,at
nearly30percent.Theranksof
unemployedyoutharelikelyseea
furtherinfluxoverthesummeraslarge
numbersofyoungpeopleleavefull-
timeeducation.
Extrarisk
Youngpeopletendtosuffermorethanotherworkersinarecessionbecauseas
demandforproductsfalls,companies
firstreactionisoftentostophiringnew
staff.Thismakesitmoredifficultfor
school-leaversandgraduatestofinda
job.Asurveycarriedoutbythe
CharteredInstituteforPersonneland
DevelopmentinMayfoundthathalfof
employerswerenotplanningtorecruit
anyschoolleaversorgraduatesthissummer.
Meanwhile,thoseyoungpeoplewhoareinworkfindthattheirrelative
inexperienceandlow-levelskillsput
themfirstinthefiringlinewhen
employersneedtomakecutbacks.It
alsobecomesmoreriskyforemployers
totakeonyoungpeoplewholacka
provenworkrecordwhenexperienced
olderworkersarequeuinguptotake
newvacancies.
TheGovernmentexpectstheeconomytobegrowingagainbythe
endofthisyear,butmostexperts
thinkarecoverywillbedelayeduntil
2010.However,thereisno
disagreementthatunemploymentwill
continuetoriseandthereisabroad
consensusthatitwillpeakataround3
millioncloseto10percentofthe
labourforce atsomepointin2010,
upfrom2.26millioninthethreemonthstoApril2009.
2 YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
Webeginthisfirstedition
ofYouthTrackerwithan
in-depthassessmentofwhat
the recessionmeansfor
Britainsyoungpeople
Youngpeoplefindthattheirrelativeinexperienceandlowlevelofskillsputthemfirstinthefiringlinewhenemployersneedtomakecutbacks
AssessingtheDownturn
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Thisisbadnewsforyoungpeople.
TonyDolphin,SeniorEconomistatippr,
predictsthatunemploymentamong
thoseaged16to24willincreasefrom
888,000inthethreemonthstoApril
2009toapeakof1.1millionin2010.
Atthispoint,theunemploymentrate
forthoseaged16to17couldbeas
highas33percent,whilefor1824
yearoldstheratewillbeabove20per
cent.
Thelong-termeffectsofyouth
unemploymentarewell-documented.
Peoplewhoexperiencelongdurationsofunemploymentintheiryouthstill
havesizeablewagepenaltiesintheir
forties,saysPaulGregg,Professorof
EconomicsattheUniversityofBristol.
Seepage4foran interviewwith
ProfessorGregg.
Withthisinmind,theGovernment
announcedamajorjobcreation
programmeinthisyearsBudgetto
makesurethateveryyoungpersonwhohasbeenoutofworkformore
than12monthshasaccesstoajobor
training.Doneproperly,thiskindof
programmecouldhelptoreducethe
impactofyouthunemployment,but
questionsremainabouthowthe
schemewillwork.Turntopage8fora
moredetailedlookatthe FutureJobs
Fund.
Backtoschool
Youngpeopleareclearlyawareofwhat
ishappeninginthejobsmarket,and
manyareoptingtostayonin
educationratherthanfaceadispiriting
searchforwork.
AccordingtoUCAS,thebody
responsibleforuniversityapplications,
therehasbeenan8percentrisein
applicationscomparedwithlastyear.FurtherEducationcollegeshaveseena
similarriseinapplicants.Scotlands
CollegesPrincipalsConventionestimates
thatapplicationshaverisenbyathird
acrosstheboard,withdemandforplaces
doublinginsomecolleges.
Ineffect,therecessioncouldmean
thattheGovernmentsplantoraisethe
participationageinEnglandto18
happenssoonerthanintended.This
mightevenbeonepositiveside-effectof
thedownturn.TheGovernmenthas
announcedextrafundingtoensurethat
every16and17yearoldhasaplacein
educationortraining.However,questionsremainaboutthecapacityof
theeducationsystemtoabsorblarge
numbersofadditionalstudents.
TheGovernmenthasalsoimposeda
caponuniversityplacesforthenext
academicyear,whichcouldmeanthat
around80,000would-bestudentsmiss
outonaplace.Thecontroversialcapis
partlyaresultofTreasuryfearsaboutthe
costsoffundingtheextrademandcreatedbytherecession.Butitcould
meanthatwell-qualifiedyoungpeople
whowouldratherbestayingonin
educationareforcedtolookforwork,
potentiallyout-competinglessable
youngpeopleforwhomworkistheonly
option.
Notjustjobsandcourses
Itmakessensetochannelresourcestowardsgettingasmanyyoungpeople
aspossibleintowork,educationor
training.Butindoingso,thereisa
dangerthatthemostdisengagedyoung
people,forwhomre-engagingin
employmentoreducationisnota
realisticprospectintheshortterm,get
sidelinedandbecomeevenmore
excluded.
Asanumberofcharities makeclearinourarticleonpage7,therecession
addsextrariskstoattemptsto
re-engagevulnerableyoungpeople.
Fiercecompetitionforjobswillmakeit
verydifficultforyoungpeople
completingbasiccoursesliketheEntry
toEmployment(E2E)programmeto
takethenextstepintowork.As
ProfessorMalcolmPayne,Headofthe
YouthAffairsUnitatDeMontfort
University,says,althoughthereare
fairlyrobustsystemsinplaceinorder
topickupandrespondtoyoung
people,thequestionthenbecomes,
whatcanthosesystemsoffer?Ifthecurrentjobsmarketmeanstheycannot
offerverymuch,thenthereisariskof
creatingfurtherdisillusionmentamong
youngpeople.
Thechallengeistocombine
large-scaleemploymentandtraining
programmesforthemajoritywith
specialistsupportforthemost
vulnerableyoungpeoplethatdoesnot
necessarilyhingeongettingthemintoworkortraining.Yet,asour
Respondingtorecessionfeatureon
pages68demonstrates,thiscanbe
difficultwhenfundingforyouth
servicesandre-engagement
programmesareunderpressure.
Itisalsoworthconsideringthewider
impactsofrecessionandeconomic
uncertaintyonyoungpeople.
Althoughthefocusisoften,rightly,onworkandeducation,theeffectsof
parentalunemployment,lowincome,
familybreakdown,anxietyandstress,
couldalltaketheirtollonthemental
healthandwell-beingofyoung
people.Thisisafurtherjustification
forinvestmentinholisticservicesto
supportyoungpeople,alongside
trainingandjobcreationschemes,to
ensurethatthisrecessiondoesnotcreatealostgeneration.
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Learningfrompast
recessions
KayteLawton:Whatdoes
theevidencefromprevious
recessionstellusaboutthe
long-termeffectsof
unemployment,particularlyforyoungpeople?
PaulGregg:Ifyoulose
yourjobduringa
recession,whenyoustart
workagain,youwillhavealowerwage.
Thatlowerwageismadeupoftwo
elements:
oneistheinitialimpactoflosing
yourjob,andtheotheristhelongeryoureoutofwork,theloweryour
wagesarewhenyoueventuallystart
workingagain.
Nowtheinterestingthingaboutthat
isthattheimpacteffecttendsto
recover,sotwotothreeyearslater
youveclawedbacktheinitiallossin
wages.Butthedurationeffectthe
effectofbeingoutofworkforalonger
periodoftimethatisthescarringeffect.Wagesdonottendtorecover
forpeoplewhohavebeenoutofwork
forarelativelylongperiodoftime.Withyoungpeople,thosethat
experiencelongdurationsof
unemploymentintheiryouthstillhave
sizeablewagepenaltiesintheirforties.
Thisisoneoftheargumentsfortrying
toavoidlong-termunemployment.
KL: WhatshouldtheGovernmentbe
doingtomaintainemploymentlevels,
particularlyinthecaseofyoungpeople?
PG:Therehasbeenalotofdiscussion
abouttheideaofajobsguarantee.
Thisisnotbrand
new,peoplehave
doneitbeforeand
wevegottolearn
thelessonsof
whatdidanddidntwork.
Youngpeoplewhoexperience
longdurationsofunemploymentintheir
youthstillhavesizeablewagepenaltiesintheirforties
Firstly,youneedtohaveaperiodof
intensivejobsearchactivitybeforethe
periodofworkexperiencekicksin,
whichseemstobeintheFlexibleNew
Deal,sothatsprettywellthere.
Secondly,theworkneedstobepart-
time,sotheindividualhastimetodojobsearchanddealwiththeir
underlyingproblems,alongsidethe
workexperience.Butparticularlywithyoungpeople
aged16or17,thefirstthingyouwant
themtobedoingisnotleavingschool
youwantthemtobeineducation
doingseriousqualificationswhichlead
tolong-termemployment.Soyouwant
themtobedoingtheLevel3
ApprenticeshipsandA-Levelsand
equivalentGNVQs,andsoon.
KL: Somepeoplearesayingthatthe
Governmentshouldbringforwardits
planstoraisetheparticipationage,but
thenthereisaconcernthattheright
provisionisntinplaceyet.Wheredo
youstandonthatissue?
PG: Idontthinkwecandoitquickly
enough.Buttherearethingsthatwe
candonow.Firmswilllayapprenticesoffduringarecessionsoweneedtoget
peopletostayintheapprenticeshipbut
basedatFE[FurtherEducation]colleges
untilanewemployercanbefound.
[Thisisnowanoptionformany
apprentices.]Youcouldalsoperhaps
increasetheEducationMaintenance
Allowancefromthisautumn,andmake
itavailabletopeopledoingvocational
coursesaswell.Ialsothinkthewhole16and17year
oldpictureatthemomentintermsof
benefitsisamess.Therearevarious
fall-backbenefitswhichtheycanget
insteadofJSA[JobseekersAllowance]
buttheresnofocuswithinthose
benefitsonwherethepersonisgoing.
Whatweneedisaneducationand
trainingallowanceforyoungpeople
whichworksinasimilarwaytoJSA,butwiththefocusonlookingforand
4 YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
EXPERTINSIGHTS
Previousrecessionscanhelp
ustounderstandhowthe
currentdownturnmight
affectyoungpeople.ippr
ResearchFellowKayteLawton talkstoPaulGregg,ProfessorofEconomicsatBristolUniversity,about
lessonsfromthepastand
prospectsforthefuture
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5YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
movingintofull-timeeducation,rather
thanmovingintowork.
Forthe18-plusgroupofNEETs,
withinthejobsguaranteeidea,itis
rightthatthereisaneducationor
trainingoption,aswellasawork
option.Thisisparticularlythecase
wheretheyoungpersonhasarecordof
loweducationalachievementsofar,
whichisabigpredictoroflater
employment.
Alongerversionofthisinterviewis
availableatwww.ippr.org/youthtracker
ProfessorGreggisalabourmarket
expertwhohasadvisedgovernmenton
welfarereformaswellaswriting
extensivelyonyouthemployment.
Conservativethinking
Thereisawealthoftalent
andpotentialinouryoung
peopletoday.WheneverI
visitcolleges,universitiesand
trainingfacilities,Iamstruck
bythecreativityandhard
workofsomanystudentsand
apprentices.Buttoomanyare
leftbehindandwearein
dangeroflettingawhole
generationfallvictimtotherecession.
Attheendoflastyear,therewere
860,00016to24yearoldsinEngland
notineducation,employmentor
training.Oneineightyoungpeople
wasNEETatthestartofthedecade;
thatratioisnowoneinseven.
Internationalcomparisonsshowthatas
othercountriesbroughtdowntheir
NEETrateintheboomyears,the
numberswereincreasinghere.Perhaps
mostshockingly,wearealowly
twenty-fifthoutoftwenty-nineinthe
OECDleaguetableforNEETs.
AnilluminatingstudybyRathbone
andtheNuffieldFoundationfound
thatmostyoungpeoplewhoareNEET
haveremarkablynormalaspirations:
toowntheirownhome,findasecure
jobanddriveanicecar.Yetthesame
groupstruggletoidentifythepathways
toachievingthoseaspirations.Thestudyconcluded:theissueisperhaps
lessaboutraisingaspirations,andmore
aboutprovidingthemeanstorealise
existingaspirations.Thishasdeep
implicationsforpolicymakers.
Aprimaryroleforthenew
DepartmentforBusiness,Innovation
andSkillsshouldbetooversee
transitionsfromchildhoodto
adulthoodfromschooltofurthereducationand
ultimately
employment.
Thismeans
creatinga
streamlined
Further
Education
Funding
Council,allowingFE
collegesto
respondtolocalneeds
andlettinginvoluntaryandprivate
providers.Anditmeansproviding
independent,professionalcareers
advicetoeverysecondaryschoolpupil,
distinctfromtheexistingConnexions
mish-mash.
ToomanypupilsaregivennoguidanceonhowGCSEandA-Level
choicescouldaffecttheirfutures.Many
willnotevenconsidertheoptionof
universitysimplybecausetheirparents
didntgo,ortheydontknowanyone
likethemwhohasgonetouniversity.
Thedeclineinqualityofcareersadvice
sincetheestablishmentofConnexions
hasbeenacalamityanditwillbea
priorityofourstoputthatright.
OneofRathboneandNuffieldskey
findingssuggestedthatmanyNEETs
weresodisillusionedbytheirschool
experiencethattheywouldonlybere-
engagedoutsideaclassroomenvironment.TheConservativeshave
explainedhowwewillsetaside100
millionfromtheTraintoGainbudgetto
fundlearningopportunitiesdesigned
specificallytoappealtoNEETs.
WeneedastreamlinedFurtherEducationFundingCouncilthatallowsFEcollegestorespondtolocalneedsandletsinvoluntaryandprivateproviders
Ourotherproposalsincludeabig
expansioninapprenticeshipsandan
apprenticeshipclearing-housetomake
sureapprenticesdonotbecomeNEETsiftheiremployersgooutofbusiness.
ThehugeNEETproblemisoneofthe
mosttragiclegaciesofthisLabour
Government.Thecombinedeffectof
ourpolicieswouldbetoofferthe
practicalhelpyoungpeopleneednow
morethanever.
DavidWillettsisConservativeMP
forHavantandShadowSecretaryforUniversitiesandSkills.
DavidWillettsMPdescribes
howtheConservativeswouldaddresstheNEETsissue
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Beaconcouncils
TheBeaconSchemewasestablishedto
rewardandsharebestpracticeinservice
deliveryacrosslocalgovernment.
CouncilsareawardedBeaconstatusin
tendifferentthemesbydemonstratinga
clearvision,excellentservicesanda
desiretoinnovate.
ThecouncilsofSheffield,Cumbriaand
WolverhamptonwereawardedBeacon
statusundertheBetterBrighterFuturesthemelastyear.Thistheme
focusesonthe1419agenda,
withanemphasisonraising
participationandthequalityof
outcomes.
FortheBetterBrighterFutures
Beacons,itistooearlytoknow
whatthepreciseimpactofthe
recessionwillbe.Wehavenotfelt
anythingyetreallyandwedonotexpecttountilthecurrentcohortin
[school]Year11leaves.IthasbeenOK
sofar,butitstooearlytosay,says
AdrienneCarmichael,CountyManager
forContinuousLearningatCumbria
CountyCouncil.Shereflectsthe
uncertaintyoverhowpost-16routes
mightchangeoverthenextfewmonths.
Itsallanecdotalatthemoment,
saysJohnPrice,DeputyHeadof1419LearningatWolverhampton
Council.Weareexpectingissuesto
arisebutwehavenotfeltanything
directlyatthemoment.
Nevertheless,theBeaconcouncils
arebracingthemselvesfornew
challenges,particularlyfortheNEET
group.IcannotseehowtheNEET
problemcannotgrow.Thetypesof
learningprogressionthatareattractive
totheNEETclienteleisgoingtorelyonemployment,andifthatisnot
there,thechancesaretheywill
becomeNEET,despitetheirownbest
efforts,saysPrice.Icanseealotof
frustrationandtheymayfeelcheated,
headds.
Buildingonexistingstrengths
Wolverhamptonplanstobuildonits
currentwork.Wehaveastrategythat
worksandwehavekidsengaged.The
6 YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
CouncilschallengedHowareorganisations
workingontheground
tacklingthechallengesthrown
upbytherecession?Here,
threelocalcouncilsleading
effortstoreducethenumber
ofNEETyoungpeopletell
theirstories
CumbriaCountyCouncil
CumbriahasadoptedtheinnovativeuseofICTasawayofovercomingsomeofthechallengesofdeliveringhighqualityservicesinasparselypopulatedarea.ThecouncildevelopedanelectronicIndividualLearningPlantohelpyoungpeopleplan
transitionsafterage16,andemployedanumberofoutreachworkerstoworkwithyoungpeoplewhohaddifficultiesaccessingservices.
SheffieldCityCouncil
OfficialsinSheffieldhavefocusedonworkingwithlocalemployers,andhelpingtobuildrelationshipsbetweencolleges,schoolsandbusiness.Thishashelpedtoimprovetherangeofvocationallearningoptionsavailableforyoungpeople,andtoensurethatlearningopportunitiesarecloselylinkedtothekindsofjobsthatarelikelytobeavailablelocally.
WolverhamptonCityCouncilWolverhamptonhaspioneeredcollaborationsbetweenschoolsandthirdsectorproviders,whichenablethemtoprovideatailored,non-classroombasedservicetoyoungpeopleatriskofbecomingNEETat16.Thecouncilalsoworkedwithlocallearningproviderstodevelopachartertoensurethateveryyoungpersonhasaccesstoappropriate,high-quality,14-19learningopportunities.
BetterBrighterFutures
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workwiththem.Ifthereisincreasing
pressureonthefrontlinestaffwho
havetodealwiththeseyoungpeople,
thepotentialisforthosestafftobe
prettydespairingbecausetheyknow
thereisnotreallyverymuchtheycan
offer,hesays.
Findingawaythrough
Inresponsetofundingpressuresfrom
localcouncilsandotherfunders,the
charitieswespoketowereclearly
focusingonoperationalexcellenceand
valueformoney.Butmanywere
concernedthatfinancialpressureswould
addtofundersreluctancetoinvestin
softoutcomeslikeimprovementsin
confidenceandwell-being.Thesedays
funderswantmorefortheirmoneyand
thisleadstoafocusonhardoutcomes,
whichifyouareworkingwithharderto
reachNEETyoungpeopleareharderto
achieveinashorttimeframe,says
CarolJackson,1319YouthProject
DeveloperatCommunityLinks.
Fundraisingisalsoakeyissueatthe
momentandthecharitieswespoketo
wereallkeentoreducetheirreliance
onasinglefundingstream.Weare
awareofwhatisgoingoninthe
outsideworldandhaveafundraising
strategytomakesurethatwearenot
relyingtoomuchononeortwosources,saysKatyHaighatVital
Regeneration.
Inevitably,therewillberedundancies
andcutsinservices,justwhenextra
servicesareneededmost.Andrew
PurvisofFairbridgesays:Wewantto
begrowingasanorganisation,to
reflectthefactthatourservicesareso
badlyneeded.Ourbusinessplanhada
growthtrajectorybutforthenextthreeyearsorsowearegoingtobeflat-
liningandhopefullynotshrinking.
BudgetReport2009ajobortrainingforeveryyoungperson
TheFutureJobsFund,whichprovides
aguaranteeofajobortrainingplacefor
all18to24yearoldswhohavebeen
claimingJobSeekersAllowancefor12
months,wasthecentrepieceoftheApril
Budget.Placementswillbepart-time
andlastforatleastsixmonths,withthe
Governmentinvesting1.4billioninthe
programmeovertwoyearstocreate
150,000jobs.Participationisnot
mandatorybutitmaybemadesointhe
future.
Responsibilityfordeliveringthe
programmewillrestwithlocal
authorities,workinginpartnershipwith
thethirdsector.Initially,theGovernment
wantedschemestogoliveinOctober
2009,butthatdeadlineisnowlooking
doubtful:itplanstoannouncethe
winningschemesinearlyautumn,
meaningtherewillnotbeenoughtime
forprogrammestobeupandrunningin
October.
Therearealsoconcernsaboutthelack
ofincentivesforproviderstohelpyoung
peoplefindworkwhiletheyareonthe
scheme.Thejobswillbepart-time,
givingparticipantsthechancetojob-
searchwhiletheyareontheprogramme.
Butwithoutproperincentivesto
encourageproviderstohelpthemfinda
longertermjob,youngpeoplecouldfind
themselvesre-joiningthedolequeue
whenthesix-monthprogrammeends.
Seewww.dwp.gov.uk/campaigns/
futurejobsfund/index.aspformore.
TheChancelloralsoannounced50,000
subsidedtraineeshipsforunemployed
youngpeopletoworkinthecaresector.
JobcentrePluswillreceive1.7billionin
additionalfundingtohelpitcopewith
additionaldemandforitsservicesasa
resultoftherecession.
Newminimumwageratesandwhattheymeanforyoungpeople
InMay,theGovernmentannounced
thattheNationalMinimumWagefor
youngpeopleaged18to21willriseto
4.83anhourinOctober2009,up6p
onlastyearsfigure.Theratefor16to
17yearoldswillriseby5pto3.57an
hourandtheadultrateby6pto5.80.
Thesesmallrisescomeafterrelatively
generousincreasesinpreviousyears
andreflecttheincreasinglygloomy
economicoutlook.TheGovernment
alsoagreedtoextendtheadultrateto
all21yearoldsfromOctober2010,and
tofurtherinvestigatethecasefora
minimumwageforapprentices.
Thesechangeswerebasedon
recommendationsfromtheLowPay
Commission,whichalsocarriesout
researcheachyearintohowthe
minimumwageisworking.
TheCommissionisparticularly
concernedabouttheimpactofthe
minimumwageonyoungpeoples
decisionsaboutworkandeducation.It
hasfoundthatthereisnoevidence
thattheminimumwagehashada
detrimentaleffectonyoungpeoples
participationinfull-timeeducation,or
thatithasreducedemployment
opportunitiesforyoungpeople.
Thefullreportisavailableat
www.lowpay.gov.uk/lowpay/report/pd
f/7997-BERR-Low%20Pay%20
Commission-WEB.pdf
8 YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
POLICYNEWS&ANALYSIS
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9YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
NewResearch
AStitchinTime:TacklingeducationaldisengagementDemos,May2009,SoniaSodhaandSilviaGuglielmi
Lookingatthecausesofpost-16exclusion,thisreportfocusesparticularlyonthe
educationsystem.Theauthorsarguethathavinganegativeexperienceof
mainstreameducationistheprimarycauseofayoungpersonbecomingNEET,
andthattheGovernmentsfailuretorecognisethishasledtotoomanytop-
down,ineffectivepolicies.
Thereportmakesanumberofrecommendationsabouthowtobuildcore
academicskillsandsocialandemotionalcompetence,aswellasincreasingyoung
peoplesaspirationsandengagingtheirparents.Itadvocatesanational,targetedliteracyandnumeracyprogrammecomplementedbyarangeoflocally-based
initiatives,developedanddeliveredbylocalcharitiesandeducationauthorities.
Italsorecommendswaystoimprovetheimplementationofnationalpolicy
initiativesatthelocallevel,suchasthroughbettercommissioningprocesses.The
authorsareparticularlyconcernedabouttheconceptofscalingupsuccessful
localinitiatives,astheevidencesuggeststhatbestpracticeoftengetslostalong
theway.
www.demos.co.uk/publications/a-stitch-in-time-tackling-educational-disengagement
EducationforAll:Thefutureofeducationandtrainingfor14-19yearolds
NuffieldReviewof14-19EducationandTraining,June2009,RichardPringetal
Thisreportistheculminationofamajorsix-yearinquiryintothefutureof1419
learninginEnglandandWales.Theauthorsvisionfor1419educationisthatit
providesyoungpeoplewiththeknowledgeandunderstandingtogetoninlife,
thecompetencetomakedecisionsaboutthefuture,andamoralseriousnessto
shapetheirchoices.
TheReviewfoundthatthecomplexityoftheEnglisheducationsystemincontrasttothesimplersysteminWales makesitdifficulttomeettheneedsofall
youngpeopleandpromotescompetitionamongproviders.Furthermore,those
whoaremostinneed youngpeopleintheNEETgroupgettheleast
investment,withfundingbeingmainlyshort-termandproject-based.
Thereportrecommendsastreamliningofinstitutionsandfundingtosimplify
thesystemandencouragedifferentagenciestoworktogether.Thirdsector
organisationsandyouthservicesneedpredictable,long-termfundingtosupport
youngpeopleoutsidemainstreameducation.Theauthorsalsoarguefortighter
controlsonapprenticeshipssothattheyarerecognisedasprovidingthehighest
qualitytrainingopportunities.
www.nuffield14-19review.org.uk/cgi/documents/documents.cgi?a=206&t=template.htm
IncreasingParticipation:
Understandingyoungpeopleaged16
and17whodonotparticipatein
educationortraining
(Dept.forChildren,Schoolsand
Families,January2009)
Basedoninterviewswithyoungpeople,
thisDCSFreporttriestounderstand
why1617sareeitherNEETorinajob
withnotraining,andhowtheycanbe
re-engaged.www.dcsf.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfile
s/DCSF-RR072.pdf
EngagingYoungPeople:Local
authorityyouthwork200508
(Ofsted,March2009)
Thisreportpresentsevidencefrom
inspectionsof100youthserviceprovidersfrom2005to2008.It
identifiesanoverallimprovementin
levelsofserviceprovisionbut
concludesthatthereismuchroomfor
improvement.www.ofsted.gov.uk/Ofsted-
home/Publications-and-research/Browse-a
ll-by/Documents-by-type/Thematic-
reports/Engaging-young-people-local-aut
hority-youth-work-2005-08
ProgressionThroughApprenticeships:ThefinalreportoftheSkills
CommissionsInquiryinto
apprenticeships(March2009)
Thismajorinquiryraisesconcerns
abouttheeffectofrecessionandthe
Governmentsfocuson1419
Diplomas,whichmayleadtoless
investmentinapprenticeships.Italso
highlightstheneedformorefunding
for1925apprenticeships.
www.policyconnect.org.uk/docs/content/pc_apprenticeship_report-0.pdf
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11YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
NEETStatisticsQuarterlyBrief(Englandonly)
DepartmentforChildren,SchoolsandFamilies,June2009
ThisisthesecondstatisticalreleaseonNEETyoungpeoplefromDCSFinJune,and
providesasummaryofalltheofficialdatasourcesonNEETs.UnliketheFirstRelease
describedabove,thisQuarterlyBriefprovidesdataon1624yearoldsandshows
thatthenumberofNEETyoungpeopleinthisagegrouproseto935,000inEnglandinthefirstquarterof2009.Thisrepresentsanincreaseof125,000comparedto
thesamequarterlastyear,andmeansthat15.6percentof1624yearoldsare
NEET,comparedwith13.6percentayearago.DavidWillets,theConservative
shadowministerforuniversitiesandskills,describedthissignificantriseasshocking
evidencethatyoungpeopleareindeedthevictimsofLaboursrecession.
DataonNEETstendtofollowapatternthatreflectstheacademicyear,sowecan
expecttoseefurtherrisesintheirnumberswhendataforsummerandautumn
becomeavailable.Apeakislikelyinthethirdquarter(JulytoSeptember),andthe
numbercouldclimbabove1million.TheQuarterlyBriefalsoshowsthatthe
majorityofNEETyoungpeoplenearly90percentareaged18to24,withrelativelysmallnumbersof16and17yearoldNEETs.
www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/STR/d000751/NEETQuarterlyBriefQ12009.pdf
ParticipationinEducation,TrainingandEmploymentby16-18yearoldsinEngland:Firstrelease
DepartmentforChildren,SchoolsandFamilies,June2009
NewfiguresfromtheDCSFshowanincreaseinthenumberofNEET1618year
olds.TheproportionofyoungpeoplewhoareNEETinEnglandrosefrom9.7
percentattheendof2007to10.3percentattheendof2008.Therearenow
around208,000NEET16 18yearoldsinEngland,overhalfofwhomareaged
18.Infact,18yearoldsweretheonlyagegrouptoseeincreasesintheNEET
population,withsmallfallsamong16and17yearolds.Thissuggeststhat18
yearoldsarefacingparticularchallengeswhentheyleavefull-timeeducation.
Despitethisrise,theproportionof1618yearoldsineducationandtraining
hasreachedarecordhigh,increasingfrom78percentin2007to79.7percentat
theendof2008.ThisindicatesthattheincreaseintheNEETpopulationhasbeen
causedbyariseinthenumberofyoungpeopleunabletofindwork,and
highlightstheearlyeffectsoftherecessiononyouthemployment.Thelonger
termtrendamong1618yearoldsshowsanincreaseinparticipationinfull-time
educationoverthelastdecade,coupledwithafallintheproportionofyoung
peopleinwork-basedlearning.TheproportionofyoungpeoplewhoareNEEThas
remainedbroadlystable,atbetween8and10percent,overthelasttenyears.
www.dcsf.gov.uk/rsgateway/DB/SFR/s000849/SFR12_2009.pdf
StoriesofEarlySchoolLeaving:
Pointersforpolicyandpractice
(BrotherhoodofStLaurence,April
2009)
ThisAustralianpublicationfollows
eightyoungpeoplewholeftschool
early,tounderstandtheimpactthat
hadontheirlaterlives.Theauthors
lookatwaysofimprovingthe
experienceofschool,bettersupportforat-riskyoungpeopleandamore
youth-centredapproachamong
welfaretoworkproviders.
www.bsl.org.au/pdfs/Taylor_stories_of
_early_school_leaving.pdf
MonitoringPovertyandSocial
ExclusioninWales2009(Joseph
RowntreeFoundation,June2009)
TheJRFpresentsevidenceinthisnew
reporttoshowthatnearlyhalfofallunemployedpeopleinWalesareunder
theageof25,showingthe
disproportionateeffectofthe
recessiononyoungpeople.Thereport
alsoidentifiesapatternofincreasing
childpovertyinWales,atrendthatis
occuringintherestoftheUK,too.
www.jrf.org.uk/publications/monitorin
g-poverty-wales-2009
Forthcoming
TeenagersHealth:Whatshouldbe
done?(4Children,July2009)
4Childrenhasrecentlycarriedouta
seriesofMakeSpaceforHealthpilots
withyoungpeoplethatidentified
healthissuesincludingobesity,body
imageandsexualandmentalhealthas
beingmajorconcernsforthem.This
reportisbasedonthefindingsfrom
thosepilots,whichdeliverintegrated
healthsupportthroughyouthservicesandcentres.Itwillbepublishedon1
July2009.
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12 YOUTHTRACKERIssue1,Summer2009 | ippr | PrivateEquityFoundation
YouthTracker:Acknowledgements| Contactus
ipprandPEFwouldliketothankthefollowingpeoplefortheir
contributionstothisnewsletter:KayteLawton,AdrianBua(researchand
writing);DaliaBen-Galim;GeorginaKyriacou(editinganddesign);Carey
OppenheimandSophieLivingstone.Wewouldalsoliketothankeveryone
weinterviewedforthispublication.
Ifyouwouldliketodiscussmakingacontributiontothenextissue,or
haveanyothercommentsorsuggestions,pleasecontactKayteLawtonon
02074706169/[email protected]
StayingOn:Makingtheextrayearsin
educationcountforallyoungpeople
(EqualityandHumanRights
Commission,June2009)
Addressingthebarrierstoremainingin
post-16education,thisreportfoundthat
socialclassandgendercontinuetohave
amajorinfluenceonyoungpeoples
careeraspirations.TheCommissionwill
beexploringtheimplicationsforprovidingimpartial,high-qualitycareersadvice,
andmakingsomewiderrecommendations
togovernmenttoimprovetheoptions
availabletoyoungpeople.
www.equalityhumanrights.com/uploade
d_files/ehrc_education_60pp.pdf
TowardsaPopular,PreventativeYouth
JusticeSystem(ippr,June2009)
Moreandmoreyoungpeoplehavebeendrawnintotheyouthjustice
systemoverthelast10years,with
littlereductioninoffendingand
reoffendingrates.Thisreportmakes
thecaseforanEnglishyouthjusticesystemwhichispreventative,tiered
anddiversionary,buildingonwork
alreadyunderwayinScotland.This
shouldbecoupledwithincreased
effortstodemonstratethebenefitsof
thisapproachtothepublic.
www.ippr.org.uk/publicationsand
reports/publication.asp?id=673
TheLocalGovernmentAssociationis
launchingaprogrammeofwork
highlightingthechallengesandsuccessesinworkingwithyoung
peoplenotengagedineducation,
trainingoremploymentforlocal
authorities.Theprojectwillinclude
policyanalysis,anexaminationofthe
issuessurroundingthecurrentNEET
group,opportunitiesforstakeholders
tosharetheirperspectivesand
examplesofbestpracticefromacross
EnglandandWales.Formoreinformationcontact:
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