13.04.11: Think NEET not youth unemployment
13.04.11: Think NEET not youth unemployment
Transparent Information must drive NEET solution on the ground
This morning, Office of National Statistics announced that 963,000, 20.4% of the cohort are young and unemployed. Private Equity Foundation (PEF) who have a mission to reduce the nearly one million young people currently classified as NEET today calls for a NEET Tracker to drive support for the next generation. PEF suggest clarity and focus is critical and a consistent, easily accessible monthly benchmark is needed to track how young people are faring at a local and national level. Transparent metrics will drive action on the ground.
PEF has launched a Manifesto for Action calling for system-wide change to tackle the NEET issue. It makes recommendations to help drive change through greater leadership and understanding of what works throughout the system. Alongside this, it highlights mechanisms to support the financing of the interventions for NEETs and the delivery of strong joined-up support for young people who are, or are at risk of becoming, NEET. According to the Private Equity Foundation young people face a revolving door of missed opportunity and it’s all too often nobody’s priority.
Shaks Ghosh, Chief Executive of Private Equity Foundation, said
"This morning’s figures reiterate that we need a consistent, easily accessible monthly benchmark that can track how young people are faring at a local and national level. This is the critical social issue facing society and as a bridge between the public, private and voluntary sectors we know that coordination is vital to shift the needle”
Graham Stuart, Chairman of the Education Select Committee said:
“I welcome the Private Equity Foundation’s manifesto on action for young people not in education, employment or training (NEET). With around 1 million young people falling into this category we urgently need leadership and a coordinated strategy to help each one reach their full potential. The Private Equity Foundation is uniquely positioned as an intermediary and expert on the NEETs issue to make this call for action.”
The ten recommendations include:
1. Create better coordination – a ‘NEET taskforce’ could coordinate policy
2. Focus on prevention – resources allocated according to likelihood of being NEET
3. Publish transparent information on performance – objective comparisons of results drives improved delivery
4. Increase investment on NEET – longer-term financing for proven interventions
5. Reform Commissioning – increase collaboration between local authorities and service providers, create standard processes to reduce red tape
6. Grow the best provision – increase networked commissioning and business support for the best providers
7. Foster better links to employment – make it easier for employers to engage with young people
8. Support case management approach for those most at risk – this will help them to navigate the variety of support services they need
9. Improve information on local provision – create clear measures of success locally
10. Increase knowledge of what works – establish an anonymous database on the effectiveness of interventions
CIPD called for a new measure on youth unemployment to accurately reflect the situation young people face http://www.cipd.co.uk/NR/rdonlyres/E4B1648C-6566-4E7F-81FE-48805E617861/0/5498_Work_Audit.pdf
According to Shaks Ghosh:
“NEET is the right metric because what we care about is young people doing nothing - the group of young people classified as NEET - not in education, employment or training."
TO READ A MANIFESTO FOR ACTION please click here
NOTES TO EDITORS
The Private Equity Foundation is a single mission focused foundation. Since 2007, it has used the collective resources of the private equity community to raise 20 million and 20,000 hours of pro-bono expertise to help youth charities make a step change in their impact. To date, PEF has helped 40,000 children reach their full potential. As part of its single mission to empower young people to reach their full potential, PEF commissions research and disseminates best practice through a cross sector expert network to create wider systemic change in line with its mission to reduce the number of young people classified as not in education, employment or training. www.privateequityfoundation.org
Last month the Private Equity Foundation partnered with the think tank Demos warning of a future boom in the number of young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET). Research found that the numbers of NEETs could reach 1.2 million by 2015 without action to tackle the high levels of exclusion of young people from the workforce. This culminated in the ‘Forgotten Half’ report highlighting the danger that UK secondary schools are failing half of all young people who do not go on to higher education.
To read the ‘Forgotten Half’ please click here
Shaks Ghosh, Chief Executive of the Private Equity Foundation is available for comment and interview. For more information please contact: joe@privateequityfoundation.org