Before the Covid-19 crisis began there were approximately 750,000 young people not in employment, education or training (NEET). The Resolution Foundation, the Institute for Employment Studies and the Learning and Work institute have predicted there will be at least 600,000 more unemployed young people, with a further 500,000 expected to become NEET over the next 18 months.

The role of the APPG for Youth Employment will be to champion youth employment in all its forms and provide a supportive but challenging response to government policy and investment.

Inquiry: Making youth employment policy work, September - December

Following the £3.06bn government investment into new and existing youth employment initiatives in the summer, is there any sign of tensions in the systems and areas where young people can fall through the gaps? In this inquiry we will explore the key youth employment programmes and investment to see what the early indicators of success are; it will aim to provide constructive feedback to the government to accelerate impact or suggest improvements that need to be made. It will also look if there are tensions in the system, particularly for young people with additional barriers and needs who might otherwise fall through the gaps.

Inquiry Questions

• Are the summers announcements #PlanForJobs ambitious enough to address the youth unemployment challenge?

• Are their gaps and tensions that may cause a rise in further inequalities amongst groups of young people such as those furthest from the labour market?

• What more needs to be done to accelerate impact and ensure no young person is left behind?

Meetings in September & October will see expert speakers, including young people, Tony Wilson (Director of the Institute for Employment Studies), Samantha Windett (Director of Policy, Impetus) and Anna Smee (The CEO of Youth Futures Foundation), share their views with the APPG for Youth Employment.

Alongside the meeting sessions organisations and individuals are invited to submit a response to the inquiry answering the following questions. Please note all responses must meet the APPG for Youth Employment Inquiry Guidelines.

In December a Minister will be invited to give evidence and receive a copy of the Inquiry Report.