Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+

Education - further and higherDepartment for EducationEducation - schoolEarly careers

NEET numbers at record low, according to government figures

by Jo Faragher 25 Jun 2014
by Jo Faragher 25 Jun 2014 REX/Geoffrey Robinson
REX/Geoffrey Robinson

New statistics from the Department for Education (DfE) show that the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) is at its lowest since official records began.

The figures recording participation in education, training and employment reveal that more than eight in 10 young people between the ages of 16 and 18 were involved in some form of education or work-based learning at the end of 2013, up two percentage points since the end of the previous year.

There were also more 16- to 18-year-olds enrolled in full-time education. At 85.9%, this figure had risen 2.4 percentage points since the end of 2012, and overall participation in education or work-based learning at the age of 16 was 93.8%.

This is the first group of 16-year-olds to have been affected by the Government’s legislation to raise the school participation age.

This will have impacted those who left year 11 in summer 2013 (who must stay in some form of education or training for a further year) and those who started year 11 (or below) in September last year, (who must now stay in education or training until at least their 18th birthday).

While there was a slight fall (of 0.8%) in the number of 17-year-olds in full-time education, this was offset by an increase in participation in work-based learning such as apprenticeship schemes, according to the DfE.

At 18, more young people were attending higher education institutions on a full-time basis, up from 25.1% at the end of 2012 to 27.4% in 2013.

Responding to the figures, Chris Jones, chief executive of City & Guilds Group, said: “It’s great to see record numbers of young people in education, work or training. But while this is certainly good news, we’re not there just yet.”

“The Government is raising the school leaving age to 17, but that alone won’t tackle skills gaps. Nor will it help young people answer that all important question – ‘what next?’”

The DfE figures emerged soon after a report from the UK Commission for Employment and Skills called for more employers to give young people opportunities for work experience.

Jones echoed this sentiment: “Young people need to know what options are open to them and make the most of these opportunities. That’s how we can get NEET figures down for good.”

Jo Faragher
Jo Faragher

Jo Faragher has been an employment and business journalist for 20 years. She regularly contributes to Personnel Today and writes features for a number of national business and membership magazines. She won the Willis Towers Watson HR journalist of the year award in 2015 and has been highly commended twice.

previous post
Exclusivity clauses on zero hours contracts to be banned
next post
Flexible working countdown: 2 – Should employers offer an appeal stage?

1 comment

Avatar
JoshLRussell 7 Jul 2014 - 2:05 pm

Is this because they are engaged in genuine training or employment or is it because they are unable to find work and have been pushed from income support to training schemes to reduce the figures? Excuse me for being cynical but I think we have already seen the degree to which this government is willing to manipulate statistics to validate its cause.

Comments are closed.

You may also like

PwC to award inflation-busting pay increase

27 Jun 2022

Don’t be gloomy over social mobility in the...

24 Jun 2022

Young people need more guidance over ‘green jobs’

24 Jun 2022

Entry requirements prevent young accessing apprenticeships

20 Jun 2022

Civil Service Fast Stream graduate scheme paused

31 May 2022

‘Inequality is embedded in our labour market’ says...

27 May 2022

More than £1bn of upskilling loan money has...

26 May 2022

City firms pledge to improve social mobility in...

20 May 2022

Young people’s skills don’t match employer needs, finds...

11 May 2022

Future Skills Unit ‘will help learners make better...

8 Apr 2022
  • NSPCC revamps its learning strategy with child wellbeing at its heart PROMOTED | The NSPCC’s mission is to prevent abuse and neglect...Read more
  • Diversity versus inclusion: Why the difference matters PROMOTED | It’s possible for an environment to be diverse, but not inclusive...Read more
  • Five steps for organisations across the globe to become more skills-driven PROMOTED | The shift in the world of work has been felt across the globe...Read more
  • The future of workforce development PROMOTED | Northumbria University and partners share insight...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2022

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2022 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
    • Advertise
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Equality, diversity and inclusion
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
    • OHW Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • XpertHR
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Pricing
    • Free trial
    • Subscribe
    • XpertHR USA
  • Webinars
  • OHW+