West London Leads The Way With Major Youth Employment Roadmap Launch To Tackle Rising NEET Crisis

West London has taken a major step forward in tackling the UK’s growing youth unemployment challenge with the launch of a new Youth Employment Roadmap, bringing together employers, educators, local authorities and the voluntary sector in a coordinated call to action.

Unveiled on Wednesday 8 July at Perceval House in Ealing, the launch event convened leaders and young people from across the sub-region, with a shared ambition to move the debate from understanding the causes of youth unemployment to delivering real, practical solutions.

The launch comes amid growing national concern, following the publication of Alan Milburn’s interim report on Young People and Work and confirmation that the number of young people not in education, employment or training (NEET) has now exceeded one million.

A bold, solutions-focused call to action

The West London Youth Employment Roadmap, developed by Youth Careers Collective, West London Business, West London Alliance and the West London Careers Hub, sets out a clear and practical framework for change.

Positioned as a “big call to action”, the Roadmap outlines immediate and long-term actions for key sectors – including employers, education providers, local authorities and the voluntary sector – to work together to reduce youth unemployment and improve outcomes for young people.

The Roadmap is designed as a forward-looking think piece, complemented by a practical summary document distributed at the launch, and will feed directly into the next phase of Alan Milburn’s national review.

A cross-sector movement led by West London

The event demonstrated strong cross-sector collaboration, with attendees from businesses, public sector organisations, charities and education providers, alongside young people themselves.

Proceedings were opened by Matt Lent, Chief Executive at Youth Careers Collective, who set the tone for the day:

“With the recent publication of Alan Milburn’s interim report on ‘Young People and Work’, alongside the news that the number of young people who are NEET has now topped 1 million, it is now clear that we are amid a youth unemployment crisis.

West London partners are determined to drive real long-term change for young people. Now is the time for bold action, and the West London Youth Employment Roadmap is a significant step on this journey.

The Roadmap focuses on tangible solutions and clear actions to help educators, employers, councils and charities tackle this crisis, together reducing youth unemployment and consequently boosting the local economy across the sub-region.

It is only through this cross-sector, community-driven, coordinated approach that we can drive the change that West London’s young people need and deserve.”

From discussion to delivery

During the event, partners:

• Presented the full West London Youth Employment Roadmap
• Explored how to amplify and align calls to action across sectors
• Highlighted practical, on-the-ground solutions already underway
• Reinforced the need for long-term, coordinated collaboration

Centering young people’s voices

A key focus of the launch was ensuring that young people are at the heart of solutions. The event featured a panel of young speakers, who shared their lived experiences and journeys into employment, helping to shape discussion around the Roadmap’s priorities.

Participants also explored how to amplify calls to action and better embed youth voice into policy, programmes and employer engagement.

Speakers and stakeholders

The event brought together a diverse range of influential voices, including:

• Howard Dawber OBE, Deputy Mayor of London for Business and Growth
• Sian Rebourg, Head of Social Value at Hill Group and Chair of the Youth Employment Action Group
• Keith Smith, Chief Executive of HRUC

Howard Dawber OBE, Deputy Mayor for Business and Growth, said:

“The Mayor wants London to be the best city in the world to grow up in, where no young person is left behind.

By bringing together employers, educators, councils and communities, the West London Youth Employment Roadmap will help create more opportunities for young people across West London and the capital. This support City Halls’ work to connect Londoners with the skills, training and support they need to fulfil their potential- such as our Get Britain Working Trailblazers and the London Careers Programme.

Together, we can turn the tide on youth unemployment and build an inclusive talent system where every young Londoner has the chance to succeed.”

Cllr. Kamaljit Kaur Nagpal, Cabinet Member for Decent Living Incomes at Ealing Council, added:

“I was delighted to be able to welcome partners and colleagues to the launch of the West London Youth Employment Roadmap in Ealing.

The challenge of youth employment is daunting in West London, as it is elsewhere in the country. But I know from experience that we can make a difference. I recently launched the Ealing Borough Apprenticeship Service, open to all Ealing businesses to help them recruit skilled, well-supported apprentices. This builds on our own track record as a Council on apprenticeships and also work experience placements, crucial in breaking down barriers around the world of work and helping young people to see how they can apply their talents.

Investing in our young people is central to all three of the themes set out in Ealing’s new council plan: ensuring that our towns and communities are places of lifelong opportunities for all residents and places where people feel safe and a sense of pride and belonging, and that we have an economy that enables all towns and communities to thrive.

We owe a shared duty to young people to help them shape a successful and fulfilling future. Working across partners and sectors throughout West London and beyond, as set out in the Roadmap, will be crucial to achieving this.”    

Erin Walsh, Director of West London Alliance, concluded:

“Alan Milburn is right to highlight youth unemployment as a defining challenge of our age: a moral crisis with economic consequences. As a partnership of seven West London local authorities, we know first-hand that collaboration across organisations is essential to tackling this challenge – particularly when resources are scarce.

Services and initiatives like Barnet BOOST and Moving on Up in Brent; Ealing’s work experience and apprenticeship programmes and Harrow’s SEND Pathways; Hammersmith & Fulham’s Pathway Bond, Project SEARCH in Hillingdon and Hounslow’s Youth Skills and Employment Guarantee support West London’s young people every day.

Yet young people still face a fragmented, confusing and rapidly changing employment and skills landscape.

The West London Youth Employment Roadmap, and the West London Youth Integration Network supported by the Mayor of London, will help ensure that all partners are facing in the same direction. As we work with partners to finalise London’s Local Skills Improvement Plan, and ahead of Alan Milburn’s final report, this Roadmap puts West London in the best possible position to help our young people secure a prosperous future.”

The initiative positions West London as a leading example of how regions can respond proactively to the youth unemployment crisis through partnership and shared accountability.