AQW 26962/17-22

Ms Claire Sugden
Independent
East Londonderry

Tabled Date: 07/12/2021
Answered On Date: 15/12/2021
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for the Economy (i) for his assessment of the number and percentage of young people not in employment, education or training; and (ii) to detail the steps he is taking to bring these numbers down.

Answer:

The latest figures published by NISRA, in November 2021, indicate that an estimated 23,000 young people were not in employment, education or training (NEET) in Northern Ireland in the period from July to September 2021. This is 11.9% of all 16-24 year olds in Northern Ireland. The UK rate is 11.6%.

My Department funds a range of measures to assist young people to develop skills and fulfil their potential.

In September 2021, the Department introduced the Northern Ireland Traineeship programme, a Level 2 vocational education offer delivered by the Further Education Colleges and designed to deliver a qualification equating to a minimum of five GCSEs at grades A*- C, including English and Maths. The programme includes vocational training and structured work placements to support progression into employment or higher levels of education and training.

The Department is also working with the FE colleges to develop a new Advanced Technical Award at Level 3, which will build on the Traineeship model and provide young people with a similar high quality vocational pathway, providing parity with the academic route.

Skills for Life and Work is an interim programme open to young people, aged 16-17 years, designed to offer continuity of provision alongside the new Traineeship Programme. Programme eligibility is extended to under 22 years for participants with a disability and under 24 years for participants from an “in care” background. The programme is a step on the road towards fully-reformed new provision that will address the changing vocational education/training and related needs of young people with low or no qualifications. It is a training programme for young people who want to develop their skills and get ready for work. It aims to deliver a portfolio of personal development, employability and essential skills alongside professional and technical training.

My Department’s Careers Service is available to provide impartial advice and guidance to all pupils making post 16 and post 18 decisions. Careers Advisers offer personalised support outlining all the suitable options and actively support all 16 and 17 year olds not in education, training or employment.

Apprenticeships are delivered through the Department and they offer a route into employment for young people. An Apprenticeship Recruit scheme is currently in place to financially incentivise the recruitment of new apprentices by employers.

Another opportunity for those over 18 years old is the Department's Assured Skills Programme which is offering 16 Collaborative Welding Skills in 2021/22. They are open to people with no academic qualifications and the participants that successfully complete the academies secure an industry recognised welding qualification and a guaranteed job interview with one of the companies participating in the academy. The academies are being delivered at the four Further Education College's where the demand for welding skills in the manufacturing sector is highest - North West, Northern, South West and Southern regional colleges.

My Department is also responsible for the design and delivery of the United Youth Programme, which is a key commitment in the NI Executive’s ‘Together: Building a United Community’ Strategy. The commitment is to deliver 10,000 places on a programme to offer young people in the NEET category structured employment, work experience, volunteer and leisure opportunities along with a dedicated programme designed to foster good relations and a shared future.

In addition, my Department is the Managing Authority for the Northern Ireland European Social Fund Programme. Projects receiving assistance through Call 2 of the Programme (April 2018-March 2022) have enabled almost 15,000 young people (at September 2021) to participate in skills and employability programmes. These programmes have resulted in over 6,200 young people moving into education and over 2,700 moving into employment. Call 3 of the Programme is due to commence in March 2022 and it is expected to assist over 3,000 NEET young people in 2022/23.

In addition to the aforementioned programmes and interventions, the strategic importance of enabling young persons to access better opportunities and participate in the labour market is recognised in my forthcoming Strategy Skills for a 10X Economy. A Skills Equality, Diversity and Inclusion subcommittee of the new Skills Council has been set up to ensure a sustained focus on barriers that impact upon specific cohorts, such as young people, in developing their skills.