Posted on 29 May
The number of NEETS (16 to 24-year-olds not in employment, education or training) has risen to more than one million, according to new government figures.
The interim report titled ‘Young people and work’ warns that the UK is at risk of a “lost generation”, with the number of NEETs hitting its highest level in more than 12 years.
The review argues that, if left unchecked, in five years’ time one in six young people are set to be affected.
Responding to the report, Nikki Davis, CEO and Principal of Leeds College of Building (LCB) said:
“These figures are not easy reading – we work every day to make the future as bright as possible for the next generation of industry experts.
I welcome former minister Alan Milburn’s rejection of the characterisation that our young people aren’t trying or that they are “work-shy”, “snowflakes” or “soft”.
It is heartening to read the report make clear that the overwhelming majority of NEETs want to learn or work.
We are more than aware of the issues young people face getting into work and we know how keen our students and apprentices are to make a success of themselves.
That is why as a college we have always made sure our curriculum is shaped by our long-term industry partners – the employability of our students is always at the forefront of every decision we make.
While I disagree with funding by outcome, as that isn’t fully in our control and puts too much reliance and pressure on employers, I always welcome raised awareness on the issues our young people face.
Personally, I believe there should be a refocusing of the system to provide earlier intervention.
This is why we run skills academies with local schools to try and support 14–16-year-olds into our industry – many of whom have never been made aware that construction degree apprenticeships, for example, were even an option.
Understandably, as a specialist college, we can only attempt to tackle this crisis from a construction and the built environment perspective.
This is why we were delighted to be named the Yorkshire and the Humber region ‘hub’ for the national collective of ‘construction technical excellence colleges’ (CTEC).
They say it takes a village, and alongside our fellow CTEC partners across the country we will work together to help tackle the skills shortage gap in our industry.
Backing the next generation of industry greats on a national level is something we’re extremely proud to be a part of as it’s something we’ve long excelled at locally.
We have countless case studies of young people that have come to us from extremely disadvantaged backgrounds and have walked out with one foot on a lucrative career ladder.
The Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) is the official measure of relative deprivation in England, nearly half of our students (44%) come from the most deprived communities in the country.
Over 1,200 of which come from the most deprived category,demonstrating our long-standing commitment to reaching learners who need us most.
Thanks to our SEND (students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities) provision, our students with SEND needs are able to succeed on mainstream courses.
Around 28% of our entire student population is made up of learners with a recognised learning difficulty or disability.
We will always fight to get as many people as we can through our door, as we believe the only way to tackle the shortfall in construction is to make construction and the built environment for everyone.
This very week we welcomed The Mayor of the West Yorkshire Combined Authority Tracy Brabin to our North Street Campus for a tour of a new building we are in the process of renovating.
This new addition to our North Street home will effectively increase the size of our estate by a third, which will significantly expand our provision capabilities across the board.
Our estates team took the mayor on a tour of the new site and talked her through the internal and external design concepts.
We appreciate the mayor’s continued support for our ambitions as a college, the most obvious of which is growth – we have grown as a college year on year (our total enrolments rose 10% between the 24/25 and 25/26 academic years) and continue to do so.
At LCB we will always make as much space as we possibly can to prevent a lost generation falling through the cracks.”
Nikki Davis is our CEO and Principal, a position she has held since 2022. She is the first woman to hold the post of Principal in LCB’s 60-year history.
Read the full ‘Young people and work’ interim report’ here.
