At the end of May 2026, the Department for Education published its Young People & Work Interim Report, shining a stark light on a growing national challenge: almost one million young people aged 16–24 in the UK are not in education, employment or training (NEET).

While the overall NEET rate for young people is 13.5%, this rises dramatically to 40% for care-experienced young people aged 19–21. This is not just concerning, it is a national crisis.

Behind these statistics are complex realities. Around 60% of young people who are NEET are economically inactive, meaning they are not currently seeking work. Even more striking, 60% have never had a job, despite 84% saying they want to work. This clearly shows that this is not about a lack of motivation – it is about barriers.

What is driving the NEET crisis?

The report highlights several key factors:

• Health and wellbeing challenges: Rising levels of mental health needs and neurodevelopmental conditions are now a primary driver of young people becoming disconnected from work.
• A changing labour market: Entry-level roles have declined, recruitment is increasingly automated, and apprenticeships have fallen by 40%.
• Employer expectations: Many employers are seeking prior experience even for entry-level roles, alongside concerns about providing pastoral support.
• Cuts to early intervention and prevention services: Reductions in funding across early years, SEND provision, youth services, and Further Education have reduced the support available to young people.
• System barriers: 1 in 10 under-19s do not complete their course and 1 in 6 do not achieve a Level 3 qualification.
• Practical barriers: lack of transport, housing costs, childcare, and even the upfront cost of uniforms or equipment can all prevent young people from taking their first steps into employment.

Why are care-experienced young people most affected?

For children and young people in care, these challenges are often intensified; disrupted education due to placement or school moves at critical stages, unmet support for children with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), and limited exposure to careers education and opportunities can all play a part.

If there are gaps in a young person’s Pathway Plan – a document that maps out a transition to independent living – this .can also make young people vulnerable, particularly if there is also delayed access to Personal Advisers.

There are also wider social impacts; loneliness among young people has surged since 2019, with 1 in 5 young adults having one or no close friends. Without strong social networks, access to opportunities becomes even harder. Lower aspirations due to a lack of visible role models is another potential factor.

As one quote from the report captures powerfully: “The opportunities might be there, but if no one in your immediate family or social circle does that sort of thing, you haven’t seen it – so you don’t believe you can be it.”

How TACT’s Education Service is helping to tackle NEET

As a charity who has established their own Education and Health Services, along with a care-experienced community called Connect, TACT have already put in place a number of initiatives:

• Early intervention and support from our qualified advisors: for our social workers, foster carers and young people when education placements are not meeting needs or when exclusions arise.
• Investing in potential and growing passions: we use our aspirational funding and education funding to provide a range of experiences and opportunities – from music lessons and sports clubs to school trips abroad, right through to mentoring, tuition, books and tickets to theatre, sporting and cultural events.
• Practical employability support: including revision skills, CV writing, applications and interview preparation with our Post-16 team.
• Access to help and support with pathway planning: such as the Apprenticeship Academy course or UCAS application support.
• TACT Connect, offering lifelong community and support: as well as continued access to our Post-16 advisors for help with employment and education issues.
• Partnership working: with organisations such as Springpod, NNECL, Become and the Rees Foundation to expand access to work experience, mentoring and careers networks.
• Access to mental health support and assessments via TACT’s Health Service.

NEET: What more needs to be done?

Whilst we are proud of the work we have already done here at TACT, there is always more to do. Early intervention is key, such as starting careers education earlier and then embedding careers conversations across all communications with young people. Identifying young people at risk of becoming NEET sooner would mean strategies could be put in place.

Employers would need to play their part too; employer engagement and access to work experience and real-world opportunities would help further down the line.

However, it is not simply about employment. The issue has an impact on confidence, independence, health, and future life chances.  Care-experienced young people have ambitions, talent, and potential. They want to work. Our role as professionals, carers, partners and communities is to ensure that the pathways are there, the support is in place, and the belief is built.  Every young person deserves the chance to see a future and to achieve it.

Sian Biddlecombe (Head of Education) and Sam Gray (Post-16 Advisor)

Read more about TACT’s Education Service.