We are encouraged to see the Chancellor commit to helping people start or stay in work in her Spring Statement
With an estimated nearly one in seven 16-24-year-olds not in work, education or training (NEET) in the UK, and rising1, it’s clear that the crisis of a young generation’s potential untapped and contributions wasted should be considered one of the government’s most pressing issues. Youth unemployment needs to be addressed urgently, not only for the good of society and its economic prospects, but for young people themselves, who deserve to thrive – we wrote about this here.
We therefore welcome the Chancellor’s £1bn investment in “additional employment, health and skills support... to help people start or stay in work2”, and hope to see the government back support that is proven to be effective.
We proudly put our Spear Programme in that category, proven by the government’s own Data Lab to be effective at helping young people access the labour market. If all NEET young people received support this effective, we’d fill 10% of vacancies troubling British businesses3. As Ben Gadsby , Head of Policy and Research at Impetus, shared at our recent Impact Report launch:
“The new government is making all of the right noises – and the Spear Programme could, and in my view should, be an important part of the answer. It is exactly the kind of programme that turns ambition from government into tangible outcomes for young people.”
It’s encouraging to see the government’s desire to balance an empowering narrative – emphasising what people “can do”, rather than what they cannot –with a recognition that those who cannot work due to facing additional barriers deserve to be protected and receive extra support. For the more than 1 in 6 young people out of work who report having a mental health condition4, being able to access work without fear of “trigger[ing] a reassessment [or] a potential loss of benefits”5 is a positive step.
We encourage the government to also find targeted ways to support those young people who are not working, and not even engaging with the benefits system. We are committed to reaching and coaching young people like these, to help them step up and make their valuable contribution to a society that will be better off with them participating in it.
Recommended by LinkedIn