Employer Hub, News
Minister for Skills joins national businesses and young people to examine solutions for improving pathways into good work
Nov 27, 25
Today, we brought together more than 100 employers, young people and policy makers to address the growing youth unemployment and inactivity challenge at the Good Work Summit.
We were joined by senior leaders from national employers including PwC, Kier, Severn Trent, and Minister for Skills, Baroness Jacqui Smith to discuss solutions to help more young people succeed in the labour market. Discussions centered on the Government’s Youth Guarantee and the importance of collaboration with employers to ensure every young person has access to employment, education or training.
Leaders at the Summit set out practical steps, from creating high-quality work opportunities and improving employer retention practices, to removing structural barriers preventing young people from entering and progressing in work.
Against the backdrop of one in eight young people not in education, employment of training (NEET), the Summit is a timely exploration of the role employers can play in addressing the ongoing youth employment crisis – and comes shortly after Government re-signalled its ambition to “abolish long-term youth unemployment”.
As outlined in our recently published Youth Employment 2025 Outlook report, the UK economy could benefit from £86 billion in the long term, if we could boost youth participation in the labour market to match the best in the OECD. The Good Work Summit brought together key leaders to discuss how this potential can be realised through evidence-based approaches, inclusive hiring practices, and translating national policy into effective local action.
With the ambition to make youth employment a national priority, the event unveiled a new evidence-based definition of ‘good work’ for young people, co-created with youth ambassadors sharing their experiences of accessing and being in good work.
“To ensure real change happens, we must bring key actors together from all parts of the system who shape the lives and experiences of young people. Today’s Good Work Summit was a unique opportunity to facilitate collaboration between employers, policymakers and young people alike.
“Creating action together matters more than ever given the stubbornness of the UK’s youth employment challenge, where currently nearly one in five unemployed young people have been out of work for at least a year.
“Bringing young people into the workforce - and helping them thrive - is not only a social responsibility for us all but an economic imperative. If we were to match the youth participation rate of the OECD leader, the Netherlands – where just 1 in 20 young people are NEET – that could increase the number of young people earning or learning by 567,000 and deliver £86 billion in long-term economic gains. With the right focus, this is a vision we can and should achieve.”
Barry Fletcher, CEO at Youth Futures Foundation
“The Good Work Summit means a lot to me for a couple of reasons… Firstly, youth voice is platformed and remains at the heart of Youth Futures’ ongoing work to ensure our employment needs are heard by the people who have the power to deliver the change we desperately need.
“The Future Voices Group ambassadors collaborated to create a game that allows employers to put themselves in our shoes and gain a better understanding of the breadth of ways being a marginalised young person affects our paths to employment or lack thereof.
“The summit was also a wonderful opportunity for employers to showcase their efforts and also illustrate how they will continue to ensure they meet the definition of ‘Good Work’. By showing young people that you envision a future for us in the workforce, you empower us to make decisions about our employment journey."
Meerah, Future Voices Group Ambassador
