Issued by: Department for Work and Pensions

Thousands of young people across England will receive targeted support into work, under a new £45 million scheme launched by the Work and Pensions Secretary.

• Landmark programme to support thousands of 18 to 21 year olds into education, work and training officially launches in Liverpool.

• Marks major win in the Government’s Youth Guarantee to ensure all young people have the chance to upskill, earn or learn.

• Comes as part of the Government’s Plan for Change to drive growth and break down barriers to opportunity by helping people into work.

Thousands of young people across England will receive targeted support into work, under a new £45 million scheme launched by the Work and Pensions Secretary.

The Youth Guarantee trailblazers will match young people to job or training opportunities and will provide all-important foundations for the national roll-out of the programme, ensuring all 18 to 21 year olds in England can access help to find work – breaking down barriers to opportunity as part of the Plan for Change.

The trailblazers will play a key role in helping the government understand which local structures are most effective and in identifying the organisations best placed to deliver targeted support.

They will also develop innovative ways to identify, engage and sustain contact with young people most at risk of falling out of education, employment or training.

It comes as new ONS figures published today (Friday 23 May 2025) will reveal the number of young people not in education, employment or training, with the current figure standing at 987,000.

Liverpool City Region is one of eight areas across England set to receive a £5 million investment into work with 18 to 21 year olds most at risk of falling out of education or employment.

In its first year, the City Region aims to support tens of thousands of young people. Within this, the trailblazer will focus on vulnerable young people often facing the most complex barriers, including care leavers, nearly 40% of whom are not in employment, education or training.

They will receive a range of support including work and training opportunities, free travel passes, mental health support and money advice.

Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall said:

"Young people are our future – and yet for too long they have been denied access to the opportunities and support they need.

"At Liverpool FC, the home of champions, we are championing young people to get the skills, education and jobs they require to achieve their ambitions.

"We are investing £45 million – including almost £5m here in Liverpool – to deliver our Youth Guarantee, so every young person across England gets the chance to earn or learn, as we boost living standards and get Britain working under the Plan for Change."

Further to this, Liverpool will work with over 600 employers to develop tailored roles and placements, and through the region’s BeMore portal which brings career and skills advice straight into your pocket. A panel made up of young people to ensure they are at the heart of decision making will also be set up.

The city has already had success in tailoring support to meet the needs of young people, including:

• Ethan who has cerebral palsy and had just finished university with no work experience. With the help of Liverpool, including support with housing, mental health and navigating familial challenges, Ethan gained part-time experience as a youth support worker and has since been offered a job with the Civil Service.

• Luke who felt he was in a black hole searching for jobs but not being successful. He has since received an apprenticeship levy from Liverpool which meant he was able to do his Level 4 Marketing apprenticeship and now works in Product & Operations Market at Liverpool Football Club.

• Ellie who decided to explore new career paths following mental health challenges. Through engaging with Liverpool, she was provided with a laptop in order to join the Movement to Work programme and has since been offered a job at the DWP.

Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram said:

"When I travel across our region, I feel fortunate to meet some of the best and brightest young people in the country. But for too long, too many of them have been held back from getting on in life, not because of a lack of talent, but by a lack of opportunity – and I have made it my mission to put that right.

"It’s because of the investments we’ve made, through initiatives like my Young Person’s Guarantee and BeMore, that we’ve been able to connect tens of thousands of people in our area with jobs and training opportunities. Now, backed by the government’s Plan for Change, we can go even further, giving even more young people the best possible start in life."

Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said:

"Through our Plan for Change we are breaking down barriers to opportunity so every young person can get on in life, regardless of their background.

"The Youth Guarantee is a genuine game changer for young people in England. I’m delighted Liverpool is leading the way as one of our trailblazers – ensuring every young person has support to develop essential skills for work and life at the critical early stage of their careers.

"Every young person deserves the best life chances — and we won’t stop until everyone has a level playing field to succeed."

Liz Kendall and Mayor Steve Rotheram unveiled the landmark programme at a careers fair in partnership with key Youth Guarantee partner, the Premier League.

Hosted at the iconic Anfield Stadium, three days before the champions lift the Premier League Trophy, around one thousand 18 to 21 year olds attended with opportunities on offer from around 40 employers – including Liverpool FC Foundation, Everton in the Community, John Lewis, and Google.

Clare Sumner, Chief Policy and Social Impact Officer at the Premier League, said:

"The Premier League and our clubs continue to support young people across the country with a range of positive opportunities that help them build self-confidence and fulfil their potential.

"The jobs fair at Anfield is the latest initiative supporting those who need it most in clubs’ local communities, and we will continue to work with Government to deliver similar events as part of the Youth Guarantee."

The programme comes alongside an unprecedented £1 billion investment to support disabled people and those with long-term health conditions back into work, as well as major reforms to Jobcentres to better align their services with the needs of employers.

Two youth trailblazers have already launched in London with more beginning to start work in the West of England, Tees Valley, Cambridgeshire and Peterborough, West Midlands, and East Midlands

As well as this, nine inactivity trailblazers backed by £125 million have been rolled out across England and Wales. These programmes will help areas with the highest levels of economic inactivity by connecting work, health and skills offers.

Richard Rigby, Head of UK Government Affairs at The King’s Trust said:

"With almost one million young people across the UK waking up today with no job, no training, and no education to go to, the prominence being given to developing a Youth Guarantee is not only very welcome, but absolutely vital.

"Young people’s futures are worth fighting for. By getting behind them, we can all help to make the UK a healthier, wealthier, more positive, more cohesive place. The King’s Trust looks forward to working with local areas, including Liverpool City Region, to understand how we can help to deliver the Guarantee."

Laura-Jane Rawlings MBE, Founder and CEO of Youth Employment UK, said:

"It is great to see the Youth Guarantee launch in Liverpool. The focus on providing young people with the tools that they need to transition into education, employment or training is critical.

"Young people, particularly those who are care experienced or care leavers face multiple barriers to accessing employment so I am pleased to see those barriers be recognised and tailored support put in place.

"Young people when in good quality employment not only add huge value to an employer but they are also much more like to feel fulfilled and happier."

Susannah Hardyman MBE, CEO of Impetus, said:

"The Youth Guarantee Trailblazers are a vital step toward ensuring every young person – regardless of background – has the opportunity to thrive in employment. Targeted interventions are critical to reaching the young people furthest from the labour market.

"Our research shows that factors like socioeconomic disadvantage, lower educational qualifications, and geographic location can combine to make a young person nearly three times more likely to be not in education, employment, or training than average – but this is not inevitable.

"By connecting these young people with the right support and resources, we can spur economic growth, deliver on the Government’s opportunity mission, and transform lives."

Sarah Yong, Director of Policy and External Affairs at the Youth Futures Foundation said:

"The launch of the eight trailblazers represents a positive first step in Government’s plans for its Youth Guarantee; we will await the learnings from these place-based approaches from this pilot year with interest.

"The voices and experiences of young people alongside high-quality evidence of what works will be crucial for the Government in further developing the Guarantee for national rollout."

This comes as the government has, for the first time, linked immigration policy to our plan to deliver a higher skilled economy that backs British workers.

Alongside boosting the National Living Wage, we are also creating more secure jobs through the Employment Rights Bill and overhauling Jobcentres as we Get Britain Working as part of the Plan for Change.

Additional information:

• The latest ONS young people not in education, employment or training statistics will be published on Friday 23 May at 9.30 here: Young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), UK: May 2025 - Office for National Statistics

• The eight youth trailblazers will be in: Liverpool, West Midlands, Tees Valley, East Midlands, West of England, and Cambridgeshire & Peterborough and two in London

• Employment support measures are fully transferred to Northern Ireland. Jobcentre Plus services is reserved in both Scotland and Wales, but the Scottish Government and the Welsh Government also deliver other forms of employment support. The funding announced in the Pathways to Work Green Paper is UK wide, the share of funding for devolved Governments will be calculated in the usual way.

• The Youth Guarantee is an England only initiative, and trailblazer locations will reflect this since Skills, Education and Employment support are devolved in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

• We will work closely with the devolved governments to share experiences and lessons learned.

• Additionally, Wales have developed their own Young Persons Guarantee and Scotland also had one until recently (now a comprehensive offer for all age-groups)

• The UK Government also plans to establish new governance arrangements with the Scottish and Welsh Governments to help frame discussions around the reform of Jobcentres and agree how best to work in partnership on shared employment ambition across devolved and reserved provision.

• Movement to Work is a voluntary collaboration of leading employers in the UK, including the Department for Work and Pensions to help support young people into employment by providing vocational employment and work placement opportunities.

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