Vital ‘soft skills’ including communication, resilience and the ability to cope with setbacks are missing from young people entering the UK workforce, according to new research.
The study, commissioned by outdoor education provider Inspiring Learning, compromising 2,000 people (including 590 employers) revealed that a soft skills gap is having a negative impact on UK workplaces.
When questioned on what skills employers want to see more of from employees entering the workforce, soft skills outweighed hard skills considerably. For example, employers valued teamwork (55%) and communication (52%) nearly twice as much as computer skills (26%).
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The research showed that the biggest gap in soft skills was among people aged 18 to 25. Employers noted that 37% of their Gen Z employees lacked communication skills, 28% lacked resilience and 27% were deficient in problem-solving.
Inspiring Learning found that poor communication has a direct impact on key office skills, with 24% of 16 to 24-year-olds disliking making phone calls and sometimes avoiding them entirely. Millennials (25 to 34-year-olds) were also hesitant to pick up the phone, with 21% avoiding it when possible.
Almost half (43%) of respondents felt they were not taught soft skills during childhood, to equip themselves for later life. This trend continues in the workplace, with over 27% of UK workers receiving no support in developing soft skills and 43% not participating in any external training or team-building activities.
Alex Williamson, chief executive at Inspiring Learning, said: “These findings underscore a critical gap in workplace skill development. However, telling young people to ‘toughen up’ won’t get us anywhere. We need to prioritise the development of soft skills like resilience and problem-solving and give them the tools to thrive in this uncertain world.
“Soft skills they learn as a young person can equip them for life and for careers which aren’t even invented yet.”
Dr John Allan, senior fellow of the Higher Education Institute, Sheffield Hallam University added: “The importance of outdoor adventure learning in a society dominated by digital screens and AI cannot be overstated. Research tells us being immersed in nature helps to alleviate stress and generate positive emotions, such as attentiveness and calmness.”
Andrew Perry, learning and development manager at Great Western Railway, which has worked with Inspiring Learning, said the train operator’s apprenticeship programme is committed to developing critical soft skills.
“We are proud of recruiting the very best young talent with outstanding minds and technical capability, but we recognised early on that technical skills alone are not enough – equipping our apprentices with strong communication abilities, teamwork, resilience and creative problem-solving is essential,” he said.
“By partnering with the team at Inspiring Learning, we’ve been able to make soft skill development a central pillar of the apprenticeship experience. Through its expert guidance, our apprentices not only gain specialised expertise, but also foster a collaborative, innovative mindset that translates directly to the workplace.
“We’re proud to see the results – our apprentices return to their roles with heightened productivity, stronger relationships with colleagues and customers, and a positive energy that uplifts the entire organisation. Soft skills aren’t just a nice-to-have, but essential skills that power the long-term success of our apprenticeship programme and our business as a whole.”
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