The government is expanding the employment support it offers young people to include more 16 to 24-year-olds who are economically inactive.
The expansion of the Department for Work and Pensions’ Youth Offer will see more than 30,000 young people given the option to access three types of support: additional time with a work coach early in their claim for universal credit, access to youth hubs, and time with youth employability coaches.
Work coaches help identify claimants’ transferrable skills and assist with CV writing and provide interview coaching, while youth hubs in convenient public locations give advice to young people seeking work.
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Youth employability coaches help individuals with more complex barriers to finding work, such as those with addiction or without permanent housing. They also provide support once an individual has found work.
This level of support was previously only available to younger people deemed closest to being able to work and excluded those who faced more challenges finding long-term employment.
However, the DWP has said that work is an effective way to improve wellbeing, reduce the risk of depression and improve physical health, and recognised that more people should be offered support to find and stay in work.
People aged 16 to 24 are more likely to be economically inactive and the youth economic inactivity rate increased during the pandemic. However recent increases in inactivity have been mainly driven by long-term sickness across all age groups.
There were 526,000 people aged 16 to 24 who were unemployed in May to July 2023, an increase of 62,000 from the previous quarter and an increase of 154,000 from the year before.
Mims Davies, minister for social mobility, youth and progression, said: “The best way to get on in life, improve wellbeing and make friends is through work, and the expanded DWP youth offer gives our young people the key tools and support they need to find fulfilling and meaningful work.”
Barry Fletcher, CEO of the Youth Futures Foundation, which supports young people who are furthest from the labour market, said: “We welcome the extension of the youth offer, which will provide support to more young people in their search for a job.
“Evidence shows that some groups of young people, including young parents and carers, face additional challenges in their search for work and we are pleased to see the start of the expansion today, enabling more young people to benefit from the accessibility of youth hubs and the guidance specialist coaches can provide.”
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