NEET: Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training

The term NEET refers to young people (aged 16 to 24) who are not in education, employment or training. Studies have shown that time spent NEET can have a detrimental effect on physical and mental health, and increase the likelihood of unemployment, low wages, or low quality of work later on in life.

The accompanying Excel download provides data from the Department for Education for upper tier local authorities. 

NEET statistics

The Office for National Statistics publishes estimates of the number of young people who are NEET, based on its Labour Force Survey.

The NEET rate is rising

In April to June 2026, 981,000 people aged 16 to 24 were NEET, which was 13.0% of people in this age group. This was an decrease of 30,000 from the previous quarter and an increase of 30,000 from the previous year.

The number of young people who are NEET exceeded 1 million for the first time since 2013 in January to March 2026.

The proportion of 16–24-year-olds who were NEET increased following the 2008 recession and peaked at 16.9% in July to September 2011. The proportion of young people who were NEET gradually fell and returned to pre-recession levels in 2014.

The proportion has been rising since 2021, and rose to its highest level since 2014 in January to March 2026, before falling in the last quarter. 

Most NEET young people are not seeking work

In April to June 2026, 40% of the young people who were NEET were unemployed. Someone is unemployed if they are not in work but are looking for work and are available to start work in the next fortnight.

The remaining 60% were economically inactive, which means they were not working and not looking for work.

The number of young people who were NEET because they were unemployed increased by 26,000 in the year to April to June 2026, but there was little change in the number who were NEET because they were inactive.

The number of young people who were NEET and economically inactive increased to its highest recorded level in January to March 2026 (since comparable records began in 2001), but fell in April to June.

More men than women are currently NEET

Historically more women than men have been NEET, but in recent years there have generally been more men who are NEET than women.

Policies to reduce the number of people who are NEET

On 10 November 2025 the government launched an independent investigation into the rise in youth inactivity. This was in response to an increase in the number of young people who are NEET.

The review was led by the former Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, Alan Milburn, who worked with a panel of expert advisers to identify reasons why the number of young people who are NEET has increased. It focused particularly on mental health conditions and disability as barriers to participation in the workforce. The review will make recommendations aimed at re-engaging young people who are already NEET and stopping other young people from becoming NEET.

The review began with a “discovery phase” which ended with the publication of an interim review in May 2026 which examined why NEET rates have increased. The interim review concluded that many young people are “becoming detached from education and employment altogether”, with the risk factors of becoming NEET for school pupils – SEND, absence and exclusion – all increasing in prevalence, a lack of work experience and due to “fewer jobs that young people can realistically enter and build from”.

The discovery phase will be followed by the “solution phase” which will identify potential areas for reform. The final review will be published in autumn 2026.

The government outlined various initiatives in the November 2024 Get Britain Working White Paper to reduce the number of people who are NEET in England.

Youth Guarantee

These initiatives include the Youth Guarantee, which will mean young people will have access to further learning, help to get a job or an apprenticeship, and will include support that is available across Great Britain.

On the 16 March 2026 the government announced further components to the Youth Guarantee, and referred to these as a “New Deal” for young people.

In the Autumn Budget 2025 the government announced funding of £820 million for the Youth Guarantee over the spending review period (the three years from 2026/27 to 2028/29). This was part of a £1.5 billion funding package to cover employment and skills support, which included £725 million for apprenticeships.

In March 2026, the government announced an additional £1 billion of funding in employment and skills support over the spending review period.

This funding will pay for a jobs guarantee scheme, a jobs grant, workplace experience and training, increased employment support and grants for employers who take on young apprentices.

Apprenticeships

The government intends to create 50,000 more apprenticeships for young people over the three years from 2026/27 to 2028/29, and has made various changes to the apprenticeship system to encourage young people to start apprenticeships.

Youth Guarantee Journey

The Youth Guarantee Journey offers Universal Credit claimants aged 16 to 24 support to find work. This support may be provided by a work coach in a jobcentre or a Youth Hub.

Youth Hubs offer support for up to six months from a youth hub work coach.

In December 2025, the government said youth hubs “will be expanded to every local area of Great Britain”, meaning there would be over 360 hubs by March 2029.

As of November 2025, there were 112 existing Youth Hubs with 103 in England, 3 in Wales and 6 in Scotland. A further 263 are due to open by March 2029, and 29 of these had opened by June 2026.