From education to employment

ONS youth unemployment and training figures

The Health Foundation

The Health Foundation recently published the first findings to emerge from its first-of-its-kind Young people’s future health inquiry, which demonstrated that while this generation of 12-24 year-old’s aspirations for adult life remain largely unchanged from those of their parents – steady and rewarding work, owning their own home and stable relationships – many are struggling to realise these most basic of ambitions.

The second phase of the two-year inquiry is now taking place, involving a series of site visits around the UK to explore and examine what distinct challenges and opportunities young people face in these areas and what needs to change to reverse this worrying trend. The inquiry will culminate in a series of policy recommendations in 2019.

Commenting on the new ONS young people in NEET figures released today, Jo Bibby, Director of Health at leading independent charity the Health Foundation, said:

“Fulfilling work that offers scope for career growth and development is one of the core building blocks needed for a healthy future. While it is encouraging to see the number of young people in education, employment or training is rising, what these numbers don’t reveal is how many are in insecure or poorly paid work or are not gaining the right skills for our rapidly changing workforce. We know that zero hours contracts, which have been linked to increased stress and poor health, are on the rise and young people make up a third of those in this sort of work. This generation also earns less than their parents did at the same age. We believe more needs to be done to support young people in this area, that’s why our Young people’s future health inquiry is exploring what is needed to help them access education, training and secure employment to ensure their future health and a prosperous society.”


Related Articles

Responses