Issue - meetings

Presentation by Collette Bailey

Collette Bailey, Integrated Youth support Services, gave the following presentation on the NEET Priority:-

What is the Issue?

-          No real improvement in unemployment rate (NEET) for 16-18 year olds

-          Vulnerable groups were 3 times more likely to be NEET than the wider cohort

-          The NEET group were from poorer soci-economic backgrounds and had worse GCSE attainment

What is the current position?

-          1 in 8 of all 18-24 year olds were unemployed

-          719 young people academic age 16-18 were NEET 7.2%

-          Much worse picture for vulnerable 16-19 year olds NEET

13.% of people with learning difficulties

29% of care leavers

74% of teenage mothers

50% of young offenders in the criminal justice systems

What are we trying to achieve?

-          Improving percentage of young people overall and those on FSM achieving good GCSE including Maths and English

-          Achieving zero NEET for all 16 year olds by 2013

-          All young people in learning until their 18^th birthday by 2015

-          Improving percentage of young people achieving level 2 and level 3 qualifications at 19

Ongoing impact of being NEET

-          Lack of work experience and employability skills meant that young people were not able to compete for available jobs

-          Low or no qualifications made work harder to find

-          Low income jobs unless upskilled

-          Progression into adulthood and becoming parents living in poverty

-          Low self-esteem and lack of hope resulted in poor mental health and wider health issues

-          Poor/lower outcomes for children in terms of learning and achievement

-          Inter-generational unemployment

What helped young people to stay in learning and work?

-          Making the right realistic choices at 16 – careers guidance

-          Sufficient suitable education and training provision for young people at aged 16 with clear 2 year pathways leading to a relevant qualification for the marketplace

-          If you became NEET and had achieved a good range of GCSEs you were more likely to secure learning or work

-          Target support towards vulnerable young people to encourage, enable or assist them to participate and remain in education or training

-          Strong supportive families or role models with a good work/learning ethic

What do we need to do?

Create an outcome related intervention with a focus on prevention of NEET prevention/recovery was crucial

-          Build the key basic numeracy and literacy skills needed to succeed in further education, training or the world of work

-          Co-ordinated transitions at 16 for at risk students identified by the Risk of NEET Indicator (RONI)

-          Early identification of post-16 students at risk of becoming NEET (drop out) and the co-ordination of support to ensure no break in learning

-          Co-ordinated approach to young people who disengaged at the age of 17 after completing 1 year learning programmes

-          Whole family approach in situations of high presenting needs – Families for Change/Family Common Assessment Framework

Challenges

-          Lack of ownership of the NEET agenda that existed  ...  view the full minutes text for item 78