Written evidence submitted by the National Education Union (YEET0071)

Introduction

The National Education Union (NEU) stands up for the future of education by bringing together the voices of more than 500,000 teachers, lecturers, support staff and leaders working in independent and maintained schools and colleges across the UK. The NEU is the third largest union in the UK and the largest education union in Europe.  

The NEU welcomes the opportunity to contribute to this call for evidence and supports the select committee’s commitment to understanding and addressing the growing number of young people who are not in education, employment or training (NEET). 

Executive summary

Our submission highlights that rising NEET numbers stem from structural failures across education, health and wider social systems. Addressing this challenge must begin with tackling the root causes of disengagement from learning, including the multiple drivers of persistent absence. Current systems also fail to recognise and develop the full range of skills young people need, due to a narrow curriculum and restrictive assessment model.

For all young people to have meaningful opportunities to learn and thrive, the education system must move away from a narrow, one-size-fits all curriculum, and top-down, high-stakes assessment and qualification model. A more inclusive and responsive approach is needed, which supports and recognises the educational progress of every child, including those with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and from disadvantaged backgrounds. This requires:

• a broad, diverse and inclusive curriculum that restores parity across subjects, particularly the arts, creative education and vocational qualifications
• a shift towards a wider range of multi-modal assessments, allowing students to demonstrate their full capabilities and develop relevant skills for life and work
• approaches that address the social, emotional and mental health factors that can drive persistent absence
• retaining choice and fairness by avoiding premature defunding of trusted, high-quality courses
• fully funded, high-quality careers guidance and support for all schools and colleges
• investment in training to ensure inclusive workplaces, including greater understanding of reasonable adjustments.

Solutions must also meet the needs of local communities. This includes understanding significant regional variation in demography, opportunity and outcomes, and ensuring reforms are responsive to those differences.

To make reform a reality, government must address the chronic underinvestment in education. This includes tackling long-standing issues in staff recruitment and retention, as well as the wider social conditions affecting children and young people. NEU members, with their extensive professional expertise, stand ready to contribute to the development and implementation of these essential reforms.
 

1.       Young people who are NEET – influencing factors and long-term consequences
 

Young people with special educational needs, health conditions and experiencing disadvantage
 

Barriers to participation in education, employment and training are particularly acute for some groups, including individuals with health conditions, SEND or experiencing disadvantage. Ten per cent of 16-17-year-olds who have an education, health and care plan (EHCP) or SEND are NEET, compared to five per cent of their peers without SEND[1]. This is particularly concerning given that education, training or work-based learning is compulsory for all young people up to the age of 18. Among 16-24-year-olds with a health condition, 22 per cent are NEET, with 30 per cent of that group reporting a mental health condition as their main health condition[2]. This compares with a NEET rate of eight per cent for those without health conditions.

Children with SEND often face multiple disadvantage. Students experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage are “more likely than their peers to be born with inherited SEND, more likely to develop some forms of SEND in childhood and less likely to move out of SEND categories while at school”[3].
 

Greater risks for young people from marginalised groups

Higher than average NEET rates also affect some marginalised groups, including young people from Black and Mixed Caribbean, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Romani (Gypsy), Roma and Traveller communities[4].

An increasing proportion of socioeconomically disadvantaged children are from Black[5] communities. Research shows that minority ethnic families are 2.5 times more likely than white families to live in relative poverty and 2.2 times more likely to live in deep poverty[6]. As a result, any negative impact on disadvantaged students disproportionately affects Black students as well.

Young people with persistent absence or lower educational attainment

The link between attendance and attainment is well established, and many families continue to struggle with challenges that disrupt regular learning. Research shows that young people who are persistently absent are 3.9 times more likely to become NEET[7]. Those who experience persistent absence are also more likely to have an EHCP, receive SEND support and/or be eligible for free school meals (FSM).

Young people without Level 2 qualifications are more likely to become NEET. They are also more likely to end up in low-paid, precarious work and stay there[8]. It is therefore essential that qualifications align with what young people will need for employment and in their wider lives.

Learners experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage face multiple barriers to attainment, progress, access and participation. The current system of curriculum and assessment is not closing the attainment gap for these students, and may be exacerbating it, as it widens as students move through the curriculum[9].

Targeted government action is essential to address the multiple disadvantages these groups face.

2.       Preventing young people from becoming NEET
 

The importance of early intervention so young people remain engaged in learning
 

A successful education system ensures that all young people leave with the knowledge, skills and attributes they need to thrive as active, engaged citizens. Yet with almost one million young people not in education, employment or training, a generation now risks seeing its life prospects significantly curtailed. Addressing issues at the earliest stage is essential to ensure young people can engage fully with learning and develop the wide set of skills needed in 21st century Britain.

The government’s own Curriculum and Assessment Review (CAR) acknowledges growing evidence that many young people are struggling, reflected in low life satisfaction and persistent absence[10]. It is increasingly clear that England’s curriculum and assessment models are failing to deliver positive outcomes across a number of areas. The current curriculum is contributing to students becoming disengaged from their learning, and from the school itself[11]. This in turn fuels the rise in young people who are unable or unwilling to participate in education, training or employment. The Education Policy Institute has recognised that England’s “outlier” approach to curriculum, assessment and qualifications, pursued in the name of “standards”, has in fact resulted in rising NEET numbers, and poor health among many young people[12].

While the NEU welcomes acknowledgement in the CAR of a lack of breadth and excessive content in the national curriculum, and commitments to reflecting diversity, addressing inequality and upholding autonomy, both the review and government’s response miss crucial opportunities to broaden assessment methods and reform restrictive accountability measures. Indicators such as Progress 8, which use exam results as a measure of school effectiveness, are misleading given that results are affected by many other factors outside a school’s control, which are not possible to model. The measures also create a hierarchy of subjects and limit access to a broad range of subjects and skills[13].

This submission outlines the key challenges in education and wider social systems, and demonstrates how meaningful action will support greater participation in education, employment and training.

Challenges in the education system
 

The real-terms erosion of school and college funding

Significant, sustained investment in young people’s education and health is essential to support participation in learning, employment and training. Years of austerity have narrowed the curriculum, constrained schools with government performance targets focused on core subjects, and left them running on empty. To ensure all young people access high-quality education and the support they need, schools and colleges require adequate funding. That includes restoring lost funding, reversing real‑terms pay cuts for staff, and committing to increase education spending to five per cent of GDP.

Persistent challenges in recruitment and retention

A skilled, fairly remunerated workforce is essential to an effective education and training system. Long-term underinvestment has created staffing issues, particularly in post-16 education. Teachers and college staff have experienced significant real-terms pay cuts since 2010[14], and salaries often lag behind industry, making it difficult to attract and retain professionals. An effective workforce strategy must address core issues of pay, workload, autonomy and punitive high-stakes accountability structures.

The absence challenge and the importance of an inclusive environment

The link between attendance and attainment, highlighted above, is well established. Schools and employers play a crucial role in creating environments where all young people feel they belong. Approaches rooted in the social model of disability and whole school inclusion, rather than enforcement models, have proven positive effects[15]. 

Parents and teachers also highlight the role of social media in the youth mental health crisis, with implications for attendance. The damaging impacts of the vicious cycle of ever‑increasing screen time, leading to difficulties with concentration, disrupted sleep, and challenges in forming real‑life friendships, which in turn fuel anxiety and low self‑worth, are laid bare in the NEU’s Big Tech, Little Victims: Robbed report [16]. These issues are strongly linked to rising levels of disengagement. It is essential that government takes firm action to break this cycle.

A lack of wider support for young people

Demand for early intervention, SEND support and child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) continues to rise, but access has not kept pace. Without the right support, young people struggle to participate fully in education and subsequent employment and training. Investment in early intervention, inclusive systems and evidence-based preventative approaches is essential[17].

Youth and community work also plays a vital role in supporting young people’s personal and social development, improving their wellbeing and agency[18]. The government’s National Youth Strategy and efforts to expand access to sport, arts and extracurricular activities are welcome, but ambition and effective implementation, including long-term sustainable funding and a focus on rebuilding infrastructure and workforce, are essential to ensure young people feel real benefit within their communities.

Embedding a broad range of learning experiences into the school day remains the best way to reach every young person. The next section outlines how current curriculum and assessment models are misaligned with this goal and are not equipping young people with the skills they need to thrive.

Current curriculum and assessment models
 

Current models already present barriers to attainment and gaps risk widening, with consequences for later education, employment and training

High-stakes assessment and an overloaded curriculum reinforce class ceilings from an early age. Research from More than a Score shows that SATs preparation places a far heavier burden on children experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage. In the April before testing, 55 per cent of schools in deprived catchments spent more than six hours per week on SATs preparation, compared with only 37 per cent of schools in more affluent areas[19].

SATs are also putting disproportionate pressure on children, disengaging them before they even reach secondary school. Almost 80 per cent of parents felt that SATs harm the mental health of 10-11-year-olds, with particular concern among parents of children with SEND[20].

The curriculum is not well aligned with the skills and competencies young people need

The National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER) has identified the most essential skills for the future workforce. These include:

• communication
• collaboration
• problem-solving
• organising, planning and prioritising work
• creative thinking
• information literacy (skills related to the gathering, processing and use of information)[21].
   

While specialist skills and knowledge will also be necessary, it is these transferable skills that will be in greatest demand across the labour market by 2035[22]. Our education system must therefore enable young people to develop and practise these skills if they are to succeed. 

However, the Independent Assessment Commission found that England’s current curriculum and assessment system does not provide young people with the range of skills needed to progress in a global, 21st century environment[23].

Several features of the current curriculum and assessment model contribute to these problems, compounded by underfunding in the education system and the constraint of government performance targets in ‘core’ subjects. These features are set out below.

• A narrow and overloaded curriculum that:
• restricts learners’ choices
• feels irrelevant to many young people, contributing to rising disaffection and disengagement in education
• lacks parity across subjects (particularly arts and creative subjects and vocational qualifications), denying students the opportunity to develop a broad range of skills[24]
• provides insufficient space to build employment and life skills
• does not adequately prepare young people for life in diverse modern Britain, nor ensure all young people feel engaged, represented or that their learning is relatable.
   
• An extremely limited range of high-stakes assessment methods that:
• drive an exam factory culture and distort teaching styles and choices[25]
• limit students' ability to demonstrate the full breadth of their skills
• fail to adequately prepare young people for modern work
• promote “teach to the test” cultures, prioritising rote learning and memorisation, without time to consolidate or foster learning.

The impact of a narrowly-focused curriculum on engagement

Too little of the curriculum feels relevant to students. NEU members have reported decreasing engagement since the most recent GCSE and A-level reforms[26]. Research by Pearson also found that the curriculum does not sufficiently reflect or represent young people’s lives[27].  Among educators there is limited expectation that reforms in the CAR will significantly address this issue. Many NEU members are concerned that the government’s renewed focus on testing, which goes beyond the CAR’s recommendations, will worsen student engagement and wellbeing[28].

Students, especially those at risk of disengagement, need to see their interests and experiences reflected and valued in the work they do. This is particularly true for young people experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage. Working-class students are likely to bring different experiences from middle- and upper-class students, shaping how they relate to school learning. Research suggests many working-class students see little recognition in school of the activities they enjoy and succeed at outside it[29].

This lack of relevance deepens the divide between vocational and academic curricula. The separation between vocational and academic pathways persists along class lines through every key stage and goes on to impact earnings[30], perpetuating class ceilings for entire generations. Ensuring that students do not have routes to progression shut down is essential to breaking those class ceilings, and addressing potential barriers to later participation in education, training and employment.

A lack of diversity and representation in the curriculum deepens disengagement, and entrenches long-standing inequalities

It has long been recognised that the national curriculum should embed inclusion and foster a sense of belonging for all learners. This is even more critical as the student population becomes increasingly diverse. Currently, 38 per cent of school students are from backgrounds other than white British[31].  An inclusive, representative and relevant curriculum, delivered by confident, well-trained and resourced teachers, can play a vital role in promoting belonging and ensuring that every young person sees themselves reflected in what they learn and how they learn it.

This is clearly illustrated by the Lit in Colour Pioneers pilot. Schools that introduced GCSE texts by authors of colour that were diverse, modern and culturally relevant reported an increased sense of belonging, engagement and attainment[32].

An overloaded curriculum limits teachers’ capacity to support students, impacting their progression

Teachers consistently link curriculum overload with a lack of time to provide the support students need. NEU members report that “teachers don’t have the time to support students in the way they would like because the curriculum is being so jam packed into the day and the amount expected”[33]. Students in the lowest income quintile are four times more likely to experience severe mental health problems than their peers in the highest quintile[34] meaning they are more likely to require additional support. An overloaded curriculum reduces the availability of this support, which disproportionately affects students experiencing socioeconomic disadvantage and contributes to class ceilings in their progression.

Overreliance on a single method of high-stakes assessment

Assessment methods in England lack diversity and do not adequately capture the breadth of skills students need to demonstrate, nor the skills required in the modern workplace. England is an international outlier in its reliance on terminal examinations (often a single written test) in education, compared with other high-performing jurisdictions. For example, New Zealand’s Ministry of Education recognises that “No single source of assessment information can accurately summarise a student’s achievement or progress. A range of approaches is necessary in order to compile a comprehensive picture”[35].

Research by OCR identifies several limitations to this narrow approach including: negative impacts on young people’s mental health and wellbeing; limited opportunities for all students to demonstrate the range and extent of their capabilities, and; reduced opportunity to develop problem solving and critical thinking skills[36].

These challenges play out in real time for young people as they transition to post-16 education or training. Many struggle to gain appropriate recognition for their skills and capabilities, especially if they are already disengaged. NEU members are all too aware of this negative impact, with over 60 per cent of GCSE teachers reporting the most recent reforms reduced student engagement[37].

A one-size fits all qualifications model for Maths and English demoralises learners without significant benefit

Given the increased risk of becoming NEET for young people with lower educational attainment, it is essential qualifications align with what young people need for employment and their wider lives. While the NEU welcomes the CAR’s acknowledgement that the current arrangements for GCSE resits are not fit for purpose, this was a missed opportunity for meaningful reform.

Continuing to push students, including those with SEND, who do not achieve a grade 4 in maths and English down the same, one-size-fits-all, route repeatedly is demoralising, and not a beneficial use of their time or resources. Nuffield Foundation research found that repeated resits often leave students feeling like failures[38]. This is understandable given that 80 per cent of those on this route experience the ‘failure’ of not achieving a grade 4 for a second or third time. Experiential evidence suggests this pressure is not improving employment prospects. Newcastle City Council told FE week that many apprenticeship vacancies require a grade 4 in maths and English upfront, and that employers could be reluctant to accept young people still undertaking resits[39].

Ending the GCSE resit policy, with the associated conditions of funding, and offering a broader range of more relevant qualifications would better equip young people for work and life. It would also be welcomed by training providers and employers.

Post-16 pathways

Limited options for post-16 pathways

Challenges in accessing relevant, high-quality education, training and employment are compounded by the narrowness of post-16 pathways. England currently offers one of the least broad curricula among comparable nations. Research has concluded that this lack of breadth does not provide the right knowledge and skills to support students to progress and leaves them “poorly equipped for the workplace” [40].

This narrowness impacts all stages of the student journey. A 2017 survey of university admissions officers found that students entering university with A-levels performed less well across a range of key skills than peers who had taken the International Baccalaureate. This included “nurturing communication skills”, “encouraging creativity”, “encouraging a global outlook”, “developing workplace skills” and “instilling a positive approach to risk taking” [41].

Lack of coherence and clarity for vocational pathways

A lack of coherence in the post-16 qualifications framework has created confusion for students pursuing vocational options. While reforms outlined in the government’s post-16 education and skills white paper have the potential to offer greater fairness and consistency, the proposal to replace the wide range of Level 3 vocational and applied general qualifications (AGQs) with V-levels risks reducing learners’ choices. It also creates a cliff edge for students currently enrolled in existing programmes.
 

Historically, AGQs such as BTECS have offered vital progression routes, particularly for young people with lower GCSE attainment, those from disadvantaged backgrounds, and those with SEND. These qualifications combine practical and academic learning and provide flexible pathways into further education and employment.  Evidence shows that AGQs disproportionately support disadvantaged students to access higher education[42]. Replacing qualifications that are widely recognised and respected by students, parents, employers and universities, carries significant risks. These include reduced student choice and the loss of a proven, flexible and trusted progression route. The impact would fall disproportionately on young people with SEND, and those from Black and disadvantaged backgrounds, as recognised in the Department for Education’s own impact assessment[43]. Any reduction in coverage or options compared to what AGQs currently provide would be damaging for students and employers. 

Prematurely removing or defunding some AGQs before V-levels are introduced will also create a significant qualification gap. This is particularly concerning for students currently enrolled in medium-sized qualifications (such as BTEC diplomas equivalent to two A-levels), increasing the risk of disengagement from education.

In the longer term, a broader 14–19 phase is needed, bringing together ‘vocational’ and ‘academic’ learning and allowing students to combine courses more flexibly. This would help young people access education and training that is most meaningful and useful to them, preparing them better for future opportunities.
 

3.       Support for young people who are NEET – addressing barriers and disincentives, including employment and the labour market

Investment in initiatives that support young people into work and create inclusive work environments
 

The government must remain ambitious with initiatives like Make Work Pay and the Youth Guarantee, and nurture good, secure, well-paid jobs and apprenticeships. Rather than pulling the rug from under young people and their families through welfare cuts, the government should strengthen these opportunities.
 

Equal access to positive opportunities such as apprenticeships is essential, especially as these routes help marginalised young people develop the tools, skills and networks to overcome disadvantage and succeed in employment. Data shows that that 16-24-year-olds from Black and ethnic minoritised backgrounds are around half as likely as white young people to start an apprenticeship[44].
 

Research shows that some employers lack cultural awareness and that both overt and covert racism persist. This contributes to discrimination and feelings of alienation among apprentices from Black and minoritised ethnic backgrounds[45]. A Youth Futures Foundation study found that over half of young people they interviewed reported experiencing discrimination at work[46]. Such systemic issues discourage marginalised young people from progressing or remaining in these settings.

Some workplaces have been found not to be welcoming for those with disabilities and/or SEN. The government should invest in employer training on autism and speech, language and communication issues, and ensure that reasonable adjustments are expected as standard, rather than something individuals must fight to secure[47].

Access to specialist information, advice and guidance

High-quality career planning and support, delivered in the right place by specialists with the appropriate expertise, can significantly improve young people’s transition to post-16 pathways. The NEU welcomes the government’s commitment to high-quality information, advice and guidance, and the enhanced Gatsby benchmarks, which align closely with key principles of fairness, equity and informed choice in post-16 education.

Delivering this effectively depends on well-funded systems, clear responsibilities and access to skilled professionals. The NEU supports the recommendations made by the Trades Union Congress (TUC) in its submission to the government’s consultation on V-levels to strengthen current provision and ensure students are fully informed. These include:

• guaranteed funding for qualified careers professionals in every institution
• investment in digital platforms that provide up-to-date labour market information and interactive tools for subject and career planning
• tailored guidance for underrepresented groups, including SEND learners, to promote equal access and informed choice.

Work experience and accessible work placements

Work experience plays a critical role in preparing young people for employment by developing essential skills and providing first-hand exposure to the world of work. Evidence shows that young people who participate in four or more quality work-experience type activities while in education are five times more likely to enter the labour market[48].

However, access to work experience remains inconsistent and often ill-suited to the needs of young people. The barriers are particularly pronounced for young people with SEND who often struggle to gain even one meaningful workplace experience[49]. This is reflected in employment rate statistics, which show the employment rate for disabled people currently stands at 52.8 percent, compared to 82.5 percent for non-disabled people[50]. For those with a severe or specific learning disability or autism, this rate drops further to 35.4 per cent and 31.5 per cent respectively[51].

Young people themselves report that education opportunities, and work and training placements are not always well designed or supportive of individual mental health and special educational needs. Many say that neurodiversity is not adequately understood or accommodated in education, training and labour-market settings[52].
 

4.       What would make the biggest difference to support more young people to participate in education, employment and training?
 

The following section summarises the essential reforms required to enable young people to learn and thrive, aligned with the committee’s focus on youth employment, education and training.

Addressing systemic issues to improve opportunities for all learners
 

• Meaningful reform depends on investment in education and the wider social conditions affecting children. This includes restoring education funding to at least 5 % of GDP, with ring-fenced investment for the arts.

• Introduce a comprehensive teacher recruitment and retention strategy that tackles the main drivers of workforce shortages – pay, workload and punitive, high stakes accountability structures across schools and the FE sector. 

• Ensure reforms, and their implementation and evaluation, are carried out with meaningful input from education staff and trade unions.

• Address the underlying social, emotional and mental health drivers of persistence absence through investment, support and inclusive practices that build a sense of belonging rather than enforcement. This includes decisive government action to raise the age of social media access from 13 to 16, with guaranteed space on the school curriculum to teach digital literacy.

• Invest in early intervention and specialist support through SEND and CAMHS services, alongside evidence-based and properly resourced preventative measures to support the mental health and wellbeing of all young people.

Reform of curriculum and assessment models

• Ensure the curriculum is broad, diverse and inclusive, with mandated subject content that is teachable within the time available and manageable for students to enjoy and consolidate their learning. The curriculum should be relevant, responsive to local contexts and delivered by autonomous and empowered teachers who can use their pedagogical expertise for the benefit of all students.

• Restore the status of arts and creative education, with a right to study arts creative and practical subjects for all children. With the EBacc now scrapped, the government should restore parity between subjects and give schools the trust and flexibility they need[53].
   
• Remove Progress 8, which disadvantages schools with high levels of student poverty, and stop publishing school‑by‑school student‑level data. This would give schools the flexibility and time needed to shape a curriculum that is relevant to their students. 

• Shift towards a wider, fairer range of multi-modal assessment, ending the reliance on terminal exams at GCSE and A-level. This would allow students to develop and demonstrate a broad set of skills suited to the 21st century.

• Remove the mandatory GCSE re-sit policy in maths and English for students who do not achieve at least a grade 4, along with associated funding conditions. Replace it with pathways offering a range of relevant qualifications that serve the diversity of learners’ needs, enabling young people to be work and life ready.

• Improve outcomes by enabling schools to make space in their curriculum to reflect their students’ and communities’ needs and interest, supported by the removal of structural barriers, in line with good practice[54].

Post-16 pathways
 

• Protect choice and fairness for learners by avoiding the premature defunding of trusted, high-quality courses, particularly applied general and vocational qualifications (AGQs).
   
• Implement a phased introduction of V-levels to avoid a cliff edge for current students. Maintain support until V-levels can conclusively demonstrate equivalent flexibility and accessible progression routes. This includes ensuring that V-levels match the full level of coverage currently offered by AGQs, including qualifications at or above 720 guided learning hours (GLH).

Careers guidance and support, including training and the workplace
 

• Ensure all schools and college have access to fully-funded, qualified specialist careers professionals, as well as high-quality advice and guidance (including digital platforms) on careers, further study and the pathways leading to them.

• Provide tailored guidance for underrepresented groups, including SEND learners, to promote equal access and informed choice.

• Ensure that workplaces are inclusive and that staff are trained in SEND, with increased understanding of reasonable adjustments.

• Maintain Access to Work funding at levels that guarantee necessary adjustments for young people entering training or employment.

• Require education and training providers to collect mandatory data on access to courses and apprenticeships, disaggregated by protected characteristics, and share this with the Department for Work and Pensions.

• Enforce the Equality Act and public sector equality duty through training and accountability measures for employers who work with young people.

February 2026