The Coalition has pledged to get more 16-17 year ols into the workplace. Image: inspiresme.co.uk
Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg has vowed to deal with the "ticking time bomb" of 55,000 “Neets” -16 and 17-year-olds - who are not in education, employment.
Clegg announced today (February 21) a £126 million scheme to get 16 and 17-year-olds back into employment or education. The programme is part of the coalition's Youth Contract scheme, announced last November in a bid to tackle youth unemployment.
Under the new initiative, charities and businesses will be invited to bid for contracts worth up to £2,200 to take young people on. They will receive an initial payment up front, and more money when the youngsters show progress.
Clegg commented: "Sitting at home with nothing to do when you're so young can knock the stuffing out of you for years. It is a tragedy for the young people involved - a ticking time bomb for the economy and our society as a whole. This problem isn't new, but in the current economic climate we urgently need to step up efforts to ensure some of our most troubled teenagers have the skills, confidence and opportunities to succeed."
This particular demographic has been targeted because evidence suggests that unemployment early on can have a permanent effect on earning potential. “By the age of 42, someone who has been frequently unemployed as a teenager is likely to earn 12 percent-15% less than their peers,” a spokesperson for the Department for Education commented.
The last Neets figures, for the third quarter of last year, showed that more than a million 16 to 24-year-olds (1,163,000) - almost one in five - were considered "Neet". The announcement comes less than a week after the latest unemployment figures showed that the numbers of 16 to 24-year-olds not in work increased by 22,000 to 1.04 million in the quarter year to December 2011.
“I think it is incredibly important that, at that very vital moment in someone's life, when they are in their teens, that they don't lose the ambition and the hope and the optimism about working. Because once that is lost, all the evidence is that it has a long-term scarring effect and makes it very difficult for youngsters to move into stable employment as adults," Clegg told Sky News this morning.
Neil Carberry, CBI Director for Employment & Skills policy, said: “It is good news that the Government has responded to business pressure to ensure that 16-17 year olds are included when the Youth Contract launches in April.
“This announcement is a step forward, but we remain concerned that this programme does not go far enough. We still need to see urgent action in schools to minimise the risk of young people becoming ‘NEETs’ in the first place, through better careers and study advice and improved business-school links.
“It is right that private and third-sector providers are tasked with delivering this initiative on a payment-by-results basis, but they will need to work closely with local authorities, schools and other public agencies to make sure the scheme delivers.”