Being NEET: A review of the literature surrounding young people not in education, employment or training

Being NEET is a problem for our society, and our economy, and it statistically has long term scarring effects on young people, their families, and the community they live in. Research shows us that for young people, being out of work or education for more than one year can have very detrimental effects not only on them as individuals, but on their families and communities too. Economically speaking, by the time 2024 comes around, based on the current trajectory, there will be an enormous skills gap, with far more highly skilled jobs than there will be people who can fill the posts. Disadvantaged young people are disproportionately more likely to end up NEET than their better-off peers, and they're more likely to stay NEET for a considerable amount of time. They are what is known as "doubly disadvantaged", because they are 50% more likely to end up out of work, and they are also far more likely to have lower qualification outcomes. Another startling fact that research has shown us about disadvantaged young people is that even if they do manage to catch up educationally, and manage to gain equivalence in qualifications as their better-off peers, they are still left behind for the better jobs in early adulthood. A potential three part strategy to this issue could be: 1) Prevention - this is absolutely key, and it is easier than fixing the NEET problem retrospectively. 2) Speed - getting young people back into work and education which is a right fit for them, as quickly as possible. The transition between education and the workplace can be traumatic, and is often trivialised, and we know from much research that more young people than ever are unprepared for the workplace - they have the technical skills often enough, but lack what is called “soft skills' '. 3) Better specialised and in depth support and mentoring. Relevance between theoretical, classroom based and often abstract concepts need to be connected to the outside, real life, real world experiences for young people to see why it is useful. Disengagement happens when young people do not see school subjects as relevant. This is why reform for the curriculum and education system, particularly secondary education, is vital, with the introduction of a better careers service, and more personalised careers matching between young people’s existing skills and the workplace. New, exciting and innovative careers are often out of reach for young people because they do not know that these careers exist, and school needs to catch up with these new industries so that they can better prepare young people for these careers. If young people can see why they are learning something, they are far more likely to engage with it and stay the course.

Name dc:type.qualificationname

ma

Level dc:type.qualificationlevel

masters

Grantor dc:publisher.institution

University of Wales Trinity Saint David

Year dc:date.issued

2022

Author dc:creator

• Wolsey, Angharad Myfanwy

• H Gwyddorau Cymdeithasol (Cyffredinol)
• HM Cymdeithaseg
• LC5201 Addysg estynedig. Addysg oedolion. Addysg barhaus

Dc Identifier Grantnumber

UWTSD

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:repository.uwtsd.ac.uk:2325