The number of young people not employed, in education or training (NEET) has increased both in the North West and nationally – promoting an expert to express concern.
The North West in 2024 had over 121,000 people in NEET – an increase of 16% from 2023, which had over 104,000 people in the category.
Yvonne Lambert is a former Cumbrian Youth Alliance chair and has 30 years of experience in the industry including at the national youth charity Rathbone, which operated training centres in nine out of the 10 Greater Manchester boroughs.
Lambert said: “I feel extremely disappointed that we are letting so many young people down now as a society.
“As a parent, if my 16-year-old was lacking in some way and couldn’t find their way into going to college or sixth form, what the hell can I do for them? What is their future?
“I think society is increasingly failing young people particularly the education system.”
In 2024 around England the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimates over 836,000 young people are in NEET which has risen by 14% since 2023 an increase of 103,625 hitting its peak in the data going back to 2014.
The North West made up 15% of England’s total NEET population in 2024.
Lambert said the reasons for NEET are broad – including mental and physical health, being young parents, chaos in their family life, not attending or being disinterested at school, poverty, learning or social difficulties, homelessness, and caring for a family member.
She said: “The idea that young people who are NEET are somehow less intelligent is utterly ridiculous – most end up being left behind due to them not fitting into or enjoying mainstream education.”
Evidence that supports this is that according to ONS data both the amount of people with health conditions and without them has increased.
Lambert said the fact that a majority are not NEET because of a health condition indicates this failure from the system to engage young people.
The number of people in NEET with no health condition has risen by 26%, comparing 2020 to 2024.
She added the school curriculum doesn’t allow for a “lightbulb moment” which is when a young person realises the importance of a skill based on how it personally benefits and applies to them.
Instead educational bodies like colleges and schools are rewarded based upon grades and attendance on an outdated curriculum which she said “hasn’t properly been reviewed in over 50 years”.
She used the example of algebra, which is part of GCSE Maths but isn’t used by most people in their life-time, failing to prepare students for later life and not providing a lightbulb moment.
Lambert said: “Students are smart enough to know that if you don’t like a subject you can get yourself kicked out.
“But this means later they lack key skills and grades in Maths and English, for example – something we saw a lot of at Rathbone.
“So these students are falling through the cracks.”
Another issue she highlighted for the increase in NEET is the underfunding of youth charities like Rathbone, which is targeted at people aged 16-24 who are disadvantaged and disaffected.
Rathbone now no longer exists, having had to close due to lack of funding. Lambert said it’s the same throughout the industry where these charities “are fighting to survive”.
She said that the government see college, schools and university as something they must fund – whereas these charities offer alternatives to that route, so are treated as less important and something to be cut.
Another source of funding that is now gone is the European Social Fund (ESF) which had an allocation of €4.9 billion from 2014 to 2020, with remaining funding stopping by 2023 because of Brexit.
According to gov.uk, the social fund was to “promote social inclusion and develop the skills of the potential and existing workforce”.
Between 2020 and 2023, 2.4 million people had taken part in ESF programs and now with its funding gone and cuts from the government there are less alternative educational opportunities especially for those who feel left behind.
Lambert believes that youth charities played a crucial role in helping individuals who might be struggling with mental health, learning difficulties or abandoned.
When talking about Rathbone she said: “We would offer smaller classes meaning it caused less anxiety for the learners whilst also giving tutors the ability to address the learners individual needs and support them better preparing them for work.
“This would help address the NEET issue by providing people an alternative route back into the workforce through a system that could be more supportive.
“Whilst also reducing the amount of people in NEET – as youth charities themselves can provide a form of education or training that some might see as more approachable and suitable.”
Evidence that supports this is that the number of people who are NEET due to learning difficulties increased by 35% from 2023 to 2024 and has more than tripled 2014 – the figure was more than 102,000 in 2024 nationwide.
Lambert added that Covid would only have exacerbated these issues because it would have negatively impacted young people’s mental and physical health.
Joel Slade, 24, has been in NEET since 2020 because of mental health issues. When asked about his experience trying to find work or education he said: “I haven’t tried much due to my mental health – but the times I did try I felt very alone.
“I had no one to guide me and I tried to apply for university in 2024. I filled out everything I needed to do on UCLan but never submitted my application because I was anxious.”
When examining ONS data on mental health conditions being a reason for NEET, it has risen by over half since 2014 – from 90,523 to 141,985 across England.
The numbers giving the reason as depression, mental health and nervousness disorders have more than doubled in the same period, going from 206,578 to 477,537 nationally.
Slade said: “I think there needs to be more assistance in finding work or education, people can feel very alone.”
Slade said he “absolutely” agreed with Lambert’s assessment of the school curriculum: “This is obvious, everyone knows this.
“I’ve never needed algebra. Instead, I’d rather have a class dedicated to teaching your life after education, one lesson could be how to do your taxes and the next job searching.”
He added that he has become a carer for a member of his family.
Steve, 24, lives in Wigan and has been in NEET due to a long-term illness since 2021.
Any health condition as a reason for NEET increased by 30% from 2020 to 2024 indicating that Steve is one of many young people affected by a health condition.
Steve said being in the NEET group has negatively affected him physically, mentally and financially.
He said that despite his illness being his biggest issue due to its effect on his daily life, being in NEET has also taken a toll mentally. He said: “I feel an immense pressure and thoughts of how my family and friends must be immensely disappointed in me.
“They don’t tell me anything of the sort – they have been very supportive of me and been with me through my entire illness.
“With that being said, I still continue to think of myself as a disappointment to friends as I feel that my value as a person is lower.”
He said he is still concerned about what his family thinks – however, now a member of his family has become disabled he is in the best position to care for them in terms of being at home.
Speaking about his attempts to find work or education he said: “I would say in my situation at least, the amount of jobs available to me are limiting due to how I can be affected day-to-day and I’ve not seen any routes that would help me with that.”
