Almost One Million Young People Still Not In Work Or Education, Figures Show

Almost a million young people are still out of work, education or training, new data suggests.

The number of so-called Neets – those aged 16-24 who are unemployed or economically inactive in the UK – had fallen slightly to 946,000 between July and September, down from 948,000 in the three months before, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

This latest figure equates to one in eight young people.

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Announcing a scheme to help young people get access to paid work, education, and apprenticeships, the government said Neet numbers had been “Far too high for too long”.

The numbers of young people who are Neet have been consistently above 900,000 since early 2024 and reached an 11 year high of 987,000 earlier this year.

Young people not in employment can be unemployed – which means they are actively seeking work – or defined as economically inactive – meaning they are not seeking work.

The jobs market is particularly challenging for young peoplewith 2025 figures showing a falling number of vacancies and fewer people on payrolls.

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The majority of young people (580,000) who are Neet fall into the economically inactive category, compared to 366,000 who are unemployed.

A rise in long-term sickness among young people has been one of the main causes of economic inactivity over the past three years, according to research by the Youth Futures Foundation.

Nathan, 21, is currently Neet and is on a six-week employability course in Leeds, run by The Spear Programmea charity that supports young people across the country by coaching them in communication and interview skills.

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Working with the charity has helped build his confidence in job interviews, Nathan told the BBC.

“I’ve gone into a good few interviews now, not knowing what to say,” he added.

“They (The Spear Programme) help you build your confidence going into interviews, so that you are speaking clearly with a meaning of why you’re there.”

Around half of the charity’s referrals come from the job centre, and all the young people on the course have at least three barriers to work, which could include having been in care, having fewer than five GCSEs or mental health challenges.

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Nathan was excluded from five schools as a child, but now he wants to move on and build a future.

“You don’t realise between 16 to 21, those ages are when you have to start thinking about what you want to do with your life. The school years matter,” he said.

Nathan’s dream is to open his own gym business, and he wants a stable job to help him achieve that. Businesses should do to take chances on young people, he said.

Historically, women than men have been Neet, but in recent years that trend has reversed.

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In July to September 2025, an estimated 512,000 of all male 16-24-year-olds were Neet, compared with 434,000 of young women.

In 2023, almost one out of every five (19.5%) young people who were Neet had a mental health condition, according to the Department for Education.

Megan Williams runs the Spear Programme and has worked with Neets for than 10 years. She says the charity is seeing increasing numbers of young people who are struggling with their mental health and isolation.

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“A lot of them are struggling to do day to day tasks like get out of bed, get washed, get dressed,” she said.

“Engaging with work and education feels very far away for a lot of them.”

But employers should take chances on people with less work experience or qualifications because “there are really work-ready motivated young people out there” she said.

In response to today’s figures, the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions Pat McFadden said a planned “Youth Guarantee” scheme would ensure young people “have access to education, training, an apprenticeship – or ultimately guaranteed paid work if they cannot find a job”.

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McFadden said the government wanted to make sure “every young person has the chance to succeed, no matter where they are from or what their background is”.

Meanwhile, Chancellor Rachel Reeves is expected to lay out details in the Budget of plans to offer a guaranteed work placement to young people who have been on Universal Credit for 18 months without “earning or learning”. Those who refuse to take part may risk losing benefits.

Former Health Secretary Alan Milburn will lead an independent investigation into what is behind the rise in youth inactivity, the department for Work and Pensions recently announcedwith a particular focus on the impact of mental health conditions and disability.

The largest quarterly Neets total was recorded in July to September 2011, when the number peaked at over a million after the 2008 financial crisis.

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