This webinar shared findings from Learning and Work Institute’s evaluation of the Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority (CPCA) Youth Guarantee Trailblazer, offering insights into how local areas can identify, engage and support young people who are at risk of being left behind.
More than one million young people are not in education, employment or training (NEET), representing the highest level in over a decade. Without the right support, many face lasting challenges in accessing good jobs and fulfilling their potential.
Recent research highlights the scale of the challenge: only one in four young people who are NEET are receiving support to find work, while around half are effectively ‘off the grid’ and not engaging with employment or support services. At the same time, the Milburn Review has shone a spotlight on the twin challenges of an increasingly difficult labour market alongside employment and skills systems that remain too fragmented to meet the needs of many young people.
In response, the Government has introduced a range of initiatives under the banner of the Youth Guarantee, including the Youth Jobs Grant and eight place-based Trailblazers designed to test new approaches to engaging and supporting young people and lead system change. With the first year of the Trailblazers complete and NEET rates continuing to rise, there is growing recognition that action is needed at greater scale and pace. Understanding what works in practice is crucial is meeting this challenge.
This webinar explored how local innovation can help turn national ambition into meaningful opportunities for young people, and what action is needed to ensure every young person can access education, training or work. Drawing on evidence from the evaluation, speakers discussed the successes, challenges and lessons emerging from the Trailblazer, including the role of partnership working, targeted outreach, and coordinated support. The session also considered what the findings mean for the future development of the Youth Guarantee and wider efforts to improve outcomes for young people across the country.
This webinar will be of interest to policymakers, combined authorities, local authorities, education and training providers, employers, youth and community organisations, and anyone involved in improving opportunities and outcomes for young people.
