Who are the NEETs?
At the time of the 2021 Census, around one in eight (13.5 per cent) young people were not in employment, education or training (NEET). The NEET rate peaked in 2011 following the financial crash and the austerity agenda of the coalition government, but it has remained persistently high.
There is still the need for greater progress in creating meaningful opportunities for young people, and the NEET rate now stands at 13 per cent. There are currently just under a million young people aged 16-24 who are NEET. This is one of the clearest warning signs of a labour market and education system that is failing too many young people at the point they should be building independent adult lives.
This report finds that becoming NEET is strongly linked to structural disadvantage rather than individual choice or motivation. Young people are significantly more likely to be NEET if they grow up in poverty, live in deprived areas, experience poor health, have a disability, or have caring responsibilities.
Where a young person lives continues to shape their prospects. NEET rates are highest in northern, coastal and post-industrial communities that have experienced long-term economic decline, while rates are lower in affluent commuter areas.
The report also challenges the idea that education alone can solve youth exclusion. While qualifications remain strongly linked to better outcomes, some graduates and apprenticeship completers are still struggling to secure stable employment, pointing to weaknesses in the labour market and poor transitions between education and employment.
The rise in NEET levels should therefore be understood not as a problem of individual motivation, but as the cumulative result of wider economic and social pressures: insecure work, weak regional labour markets, reduced public services, rising childcare costs, worsening mental health and declining vocational routes.
Reducing NEET rates will require a serious strategy to rebuild opportunity, strengthen public services and ensure all young people can make a successful transition into adulthood.
Methodology
This report uses data from the 2021 Census provided by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), focusing on respondents aged 16 to 24 in England with valid economic activity responses. This subgroup consists of 4.8 million respondents.
At the time of the Census:
- 12.9 per cent of young women were NEET
- 14.1 per cent of young men were NEET
Additional evidence was drawn from:
- NHS Hospital Episode Statistics
- ONS birth registration data
- Labour Force Survey analysis using 2021 aggregated data
- Apprenticeship data from the Department for Education and the Department of Work and Pensions
As Census data captures a snapshot in time, not all young people recorded as NEET will have been long-term disengaged. However, the findings provide a powerful picture of who faces the greatest barriers.
This report contains references to self-harm.
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