Whitehall has left generation of teenagers with no hope, says Andy Burnham

The Guardian

30-03-2025

The number of young people not in education, employment or training has risen to unacceptable levels because Whitehall is failing to listen and respond to their needs, Andy Burnham will say this week.
The mayor of Greater Manchester will warn in a key speech that the number of 'neets', which now stands at almost 1 million - the highest figure in 11 years – will continue to rise unless the Department for Education (DfE) adopts a new schools policy more geared to their requirements.
Over recent weeks, government ministers have attempted to make a 'moral' case for welfare cuts and changes to the benefit system, partly by highlighting the number of young people who are not in employment or trying to get work, and instead are living on benefits.
Based on experience from Manchester, Burnham will say that one of the main causes of this is a school system that fails them and is overly focused on the traditional university route, rather than catering for the requirements of those who want to pursue technical paths.
He will say that schools in England are judged by Ofsted on their performance against the English baccalaureate (EBacc), described on the DfE's website as a collection of GCSEs 'considered essential to many degrees'.
He will argue that this has left England with an education system designed for some but not all young people. In Greater Manchester, about two-thirds do not pursue the traditional university route.
The rise in the number of neets is causing increasing concern among MPs at Westminster and educationists, with senior figures in government also growing ever-more alarmed by the loss of a potentially huge skill base to the economy.
The Policy Connect thinktank and the independent Skills Commission last month launched a new inquiry, to be chaired by a cross-party group of MPs, aimed at developing policies to ensure that, by 2050, the UK has the lowest percentage of young people who are not in education, employment or training in the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development.
The neets rate has remained at 12% or higher for several decades. According to labour market statistics published by the Office for National Statistics in February, the UK unemployment rate for young people aged 16 to 24 was 14.8%, up from 11.9% the year before.The problems is bound up with ethnic inequalities, with young people from Black Caribbean backgrounds having a neet rate more than double that of young people with white British backgrounds. Regional inequalities are also substantial, with neet rates of 15% in the north-east of England, compared with 9.4% in the south-west.
Results from a recent survey of schools in the Greater Manchester region based on 100,000 students reveal that many young people are losing their sense of connection with school as they progress. While 67% of pupils told the #BeeWell survey that they felt a sense of belonging in year 7, this dropped to 51% by year 10. About 64% of pupils reported 'good' wellbeing in year 7, compared with 55% in year 10.
In a speech to the Institute for Government on Wednesday, Burnham will say: 'Whitehall is simply not hearing the voices of these young people who need something very different from the education system. It is clear from the BeeWell survey that too many get to the end of secondary school and feel that the system has disinvested from them. Too many are leaving without hope and a clear path for the future.'
He will call on the DfE to change schools policy and bring in a principle of parity between academic and technical education and the devolution of responsibility for the post-16 technical system. He will say: 'Different regions of England have different economies and therefore it stands to reason that post-16 technical education is a prime candidate for devolution. The Department for Education's long-running resistance to this is a significant barrier to growth.'
To balance the EBacc, Burnham and his team have developed a Greater Manchester baccalaureate, or MBacc – a selection of subjects linked to seven sectoral gateways to the Greater Manchester economy. The ambition, by 2030, is to provide a high-quality 45-day work placement for every young person who wants one, linked to T-levels and BTecs.
The mayor will say that the country's failure to tackle longstanding problems such as the rise in neets is a reflection of the top-down way in which it has been run. Burnham will call for radical change in the architecture and culture of the British state, with the new devolved bodies across England being given a much greater role in setting direction.
He will say: 'As a former minister, I have great respect for Whitehall and for the people who work within it. But it is not wired for growth. By definition, growth can't be ordered from the top down by individual silos but has to be nurtured from the bottom up, linking education to transport, employment, planning and housing.
'I give credit to the civil servants in government who have driven England's devolution journey to this point but the truth is that all now need to get with the programme. Devolution needs to go much deeper and faster if we are to get the growth we need.'
A DfE spokesperson said: 'Getting young people into education, employment or training is key for our mission to grow the economy under our Plan for Change.
'Through our new Youth Guarantee, every 18- to 21-year-old in England will have help to access an apprenticeship, quality training and education opportunities or help to find a job.
'To give all young people the foundations they need to achieve and thrive, we're also recruiting 6,500 new teachers, rolling out careers advice, increasing opportunities through Skills England, widening access to apprenticeships, improving mental health support in schools and delivering a cutting-edge curriculum to ensure pupils are set up for life, work and the future.'