Really interesting report on NEETs. What do you think happens next?

[SomedayIllBeSaturdayNight]

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2026/may/23/uk-young-people-workplace-anxiety-alan-milburn

Such an interesting report by Alan Millburn in why the UK has so many young NEETs.

' “[Young people] are different, not worse, not lazier, not less intelligent. They have grown up in a digital world that has rewired how they communicate, form relationships and manage stress. They have fewer experiences of workplaces and they present with higher levels of anxiety and depression.”

Does this ring true to you? And what are the next few years going to look like?

I personally can't see any reason for the government not to ban social media for under 16s in this context.

So there will be some quite severe MH issues within that 13% and most will have got sfa from CAMHS and will be getting sfa from adult services. Better provision from CAMHS would alleviate adult services and stop treatable conditions becoming hard to treat conditions.

Ditto SEND schools need to be catering better for SEND. Schools as a whole need more money and we need to be examining the damage done by Gove.

It didn’t. Just like physical illnesses, ADHD can have different presentations and effects on people. External factors can exacerbate the symptoms or ameliorate them. It can present alongside other issues that make things difficult on their own. On top of that, we once again have the issue of not just being able to walk into a job(even menial jobs) and prove yourself/make a start that way, plus a low job market.

But even when PP could do that they chose to claim the dole and thought themselves too different and special.

Sorry but I have little sympathy with anyone who seems to see NMW jobs as for other people/migrants regardless of their reasons.

There aren’t enough SEND placements to begin with, which is part of the problem. Provision for able kids with SEND that struggle in a mainstream environment are basically inexistent. “He/she is too clever for us”. Well being clever isn’t helping much when he/she is spending most of their time in distress. Not a lot of learning will take place.

Oh dear, yet more ignorance. ADHD often comes with autism and face to face work can be catastrophic for many ND young people. It’s not about being different and special it’s about having a protected disability that comes with rights.Work environments often do not want ND young people or to provide reasonable adjustments hence so many people with autism being out of work. The numbers are stark.

My dd has had to receive a lot of support from services and one of the key things she has learnt is to listen to her overwhelm and manage it effectively. When she pushed herself to just do what everybody else does she ended up seriously unwell and under many services draining money.

There is nothing she’d like more than to be NT but she isn’t.

Why are you applying that PP’s train of thought, choices and behaviours to all the NEETS today though? It’s like you’re determined to assume the worst of this cohort. Anecdata is not data.

It’s out there already. We employ a
some autistic staff. We came across the help when a lovely lady came for an interview with her support worker. The support worker rang me later and described the support they can offer the employer. As a tiny employer we were worried about fulfilling any extra needs and falling foul of regulations. She spent time walking us through it, was there at the end of the phone, had weekly check ins with us and the employee at the beginning to settle everyone in (most useful thing she did) and also offered training to our existing staff about management best practice. I was blown away but the support.

It worked though!

I agree with you about minimum homework at primary and possibly cancelling SATs but the whole point of the Y1 phonics check and the Y4 times table check (and to an extent the SATs) is to make sure children are on track with the basics and to identify those who need extra support - many will say “well schools know this anyway” but the tests are providing some external accountability to ensure a child who can’t read or add up isn’t just left to their own devices as long as they aren’t disturbing the class.

Perhaps it should be done by teacher assessment with some kind of external checks / moderation but there does need to be some way of checking children are on track and schools are supporting them appropriately.

Also, I notice everyone is focusing on ADHD , ASD and anxiety/depression. It’s an easy one to dismiss and take a cheap shot at.

However , it also includes things like cancers and blood conditions
cardiovascular conditions
chronic infections
metabolic, endocrine, digestive, renal, and genitourinary conditions
neurological conditions
respiratory conditions
mental health and behavioural conditions
musculoskeletal and skin conditions
non-specific chronic health conditions.

Percentage wise, we actually have less NEETS now than in the 90s. Around 2016 was when the number was at its lowest.

I think the interesting thing about this article is the comparison with other countries that arent places where people starve of the streets either.

The op asked about banning social media but Japan and Netherlands (the countries referenced) are only just looking at doing this.

So there must be other structural stuff happening than just social media.

The problem is , that recognising there is an issue , doesn’t mean that issue then gets fixed, no matter what and how much support you throw at it. So you still end up with a y6 child that can’t read a paper if their life depended on it, open up the reading paper , burst into tears and once again, they realise just how “thick” they are (not my words). If you’re lucky, you might get them to at least have a guess at the multiple choice questions.

There used to be loads of low paid casual jobs that didn't require much commitment from either side and came with fairly low expectations from the employer and employee. Probably bad for workers rights but good for young people getting jobs. Also, quite a lot of unofficial cash payment opportunities for shot term jobs and odd jobs (I imagine they still exist). People also generally retired earlier and a lot more women stopped working when they had children, so that created more opportunities as people filled those roles and created more opportunities at the bottom. Possibly things like tax credits, in work benefits and tax thresholds may also stop people from shifting around as much as they used to. I know that on my job people have become less likely to go for promotion as the pay difference isn't worth it.

Yes - the everyone is a winner primary school approach does few favours. Most reasonably bright kids clock onto this early on “Mummy, Johnny won the star award again - probably for not hitting someone all week”. The Johnnies of this world are pandered to, given special time with the head when they whack someone, see no real consequences to their behaviour, then get to secondary where it’s strict and have no idea how to cope. They are never going to learn that in the workplace you don’t get rewarded for behaving - that is the minimum basic expectation - therefore they are not acquiring the skills which will enable them to hold down a job.

Because they’re making themselves an example and I see this reflected in today’s NEETs.

The main difference in the Netherlands is government involvement and policies , at every level to support young people into work , incentives for business to hire young people and more vocational pathways and opportunities. All of these were clear, well thought out and properly funded policies which is why they work so well.

Their young people are also mentally and physically healthier. They don’t have the chav culture we have on the same scale. Yesterday in our local town was a display of it - young men cycling round with tops off and joints in their mouths, music and weed smoke blasting from cars. This isn’t even a ‘rough’ area.

Again , with the assumptions. The rates of anxiety and depression in the Netherlands for young people are pretty similar to the UK.

Yes that behaviour could be viewed as chav if you like but that doesn’t mean they are NEETs

At least one of them has a car, driving illegally perhaps but they have to get caught.

They might go to the gym and want to show off their bodies they exercise to get, feel attractive. It was a weekend so they might all be studying and working in the week and this was their way of enjoying the sunshine and they have to gather on the streets more now because they can’t afford their own housing yet.
They could be perfectly fine physically and mentally.

So not sure how this relates to NEETs really.

It isn't just the UK where you see that sort of behaviour fgs!!!

Way more prevalent in the UK. We have higher crime; a bigger drug problem; our NEET figures are significantly higher than comparable countries.

How is it that other countries with smartphones don't have this level of anxiety? Pretty much every country has young ppl on phones.

At 16/17 I was waitressing and working in local shops, those jobs still exist. I live in a seaside town and there are lots of young people employed here especially over the summer season

Other countries like….?

Comparing to other countries means you have to look at how other countries treat their young! Many invest a lot more into children & young people then we do.

@TheCurious0range Good for you but where I live they don’t