Enabling pathways out of NEET status: the European evidence tells us what works
Enabling pathways out of NEET status: the European evidence tells us what works
Multi-level systemic change is needed to create the conditions for effective relational support for young people
Posted
25 June 2026
Photo by Branislav Rodman on Unsplash
With the policy window wide open for thinking about the NEET crisis in the UK, thanks to the Milburn interim report focusing attention on the scale and complexity of the problem, we are reviewing the evidence from Europe on what works.
The factors that trap young people in inactivity — economic underperformance, the impact of automation and AI on entry-level jobs, an education system focused on attainment at the expense of preparation for working life, and a growing mental health crisis — are complex, interdependent challenges in dynamic relationship with each other.
NEET policy failures
Meanwhile, local services trying to help are hampered by policy failures, clearly identified in a recently published meta-evaluation of 147 European active labour market programmes as part of the EU-ALMPO project.
The evaluation shows that weak institutional capacity, fragmented short-term funding, and misaligned incentives are the most consistent predictors of failure. Those incentives reward creaming (the focusing of support on young people closest to the labour market), systematically diverting help from those who need it most.
What works to promote pathways out of NEET status
The evidence on what works to connect young people to jobs, education and training is clear. The same meta-evaluation highlights that personalised, sustained, relational support combined with skills training consistently outperforms standalone, generic provision — when coordinated across institutions and held accountable for outcomes.
TIHR’s own work bears this out. In our Interreg 2 Seas Boosting Human Capital project we worked with low-skilled young job-seekers across Kent, France and Belgium — applying learning-from-experience methodologies with young people, their families, and their tutors and mentors together, addressing the whole system, not just the individual. Our Networks for NEETs research, part of a European Erasmus study, confirmed that developing young people’s social capital — their peer and community networks — is critical to moving out of NEET status.
“The countries with the strongest outcomes succeed through sustained multi-agency coordination, trusted adult relationships, and support designed around the individual rather than the programme.”
Kari Hadjivassiliou, Principal Researcher, Tavistock Institute
Expert contributor to comparative study of NEET interventions across France, Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia
Every young person’s path out of NEET status is, at its core, a relational journey. It depends on the presence of trusted adults, sustained over time, working across the boundaries of education, health, employment and family support.
Enabling relational journeys for NEET young people
To enable those relational journeys at scale, we need multi-level systemic change to economic, education, health and labour market policy. Meanwhile, complexity and systems thinking should be applied to address the dynamics between institutions, the incentives shaping behaviour, the evaluation of what works and why and the active participation of young people in designing the responses meant to serve them.
If you are working on youth employment, NEET reduction, or active labour market policy and want to explore how to apply complexity thinking and a systems-level approach, contact our Business Support Officer, Fatima Kamaté.
Resources
Extended article
Children and Young People Now published an extended version of this article with more details on the features of some successful European services.
Children & Young People Now 25 June 2026
Online course suitable for young people
Online learning programme suitable for young people entering the labour market
Sources
Milburn, A. (2026). Young People and Work: Interim Report. Department for Work and Pensions, 28 May 2026. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/young-people-and-work-interim-report/young-people-and-work-interim-report
Office for National Statistics (2026). Young People Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET), UK. November 2025 bulletin. https://www.ons.gov.uk/employmentandlabourmarket/peoplenotinwork/unemployment/bulletins/youngpeoplenotineducationemploymentortrainingneet/november2025
Hofman, J., Hutton, E. and Nightingale, M. (2025). What Works in Reducing NEET Rates: A Comparative Study. RAND Europe / Youth Futures Foundation, November 2025. https://d3ap8wlygzdrik.cloudfront.net/Research_What-works_reducing-NEET-rates-comparison-study_RAND_Youth-Futures_report_Nov-2025.pdf
EU-ALMPO (2025). Determinants of Effective ALMPs Report, WP1, October 2025. TIHR partner project. https://eu-almpo.eu/wp-content/uploads/2026/05/D1_D1.1c_WP1_Determinants-of-effective-ALMPs-Report.pdf
Spielhofer, T. et al. (2009). Barriers to Participation in Education and Training. Department for Education Research Report DFE-RR009. https://dera.ioe.ac.uk/id/eprint/82/1/DFE-RR009.pdf
Tavistock Institute of Human Relations (2019–2022). Interreg 2 Seas Boosting Human Capital 21 (BHC21). https://tavinstitute.org/projects/interreg-2-seas-boosting-human-capital-21-bhc21
Spielhofer, T. and Hahne, A.S. (2020). Networks for NEETs. Tavistock Institute of Human Relations / ComNetNEET Erasmus project. https://tavinstitute.org/news/networks-for-neets
Hadjivassiliou, K.P. (2016). What Works for the Labour Market Integration of Youth at Risk. Presentation to DG EMPL High Level Learning Exchange, Stockholm, 19 February 2016.
Subscribe to our newsletter
Related pages
