Basic skills training
Basic skills training provides valuable underpinning for entry and progression in work and learning, and can be particularly effective in supporting apprenticeship participation.
Last updated: 26 August 2026
Low positive impact
Well supported
Medium positive impact
Consolidating
Low positive impact
Emerging
Moderate - likely to require some intense, complex or specific resource needs for effective delivery
For every 100 young people who are NEET and take part in basic skills training as a component of a targeted youth employment intervention, around 3 additional young people are in employment 12 to 24 months later compared to similar young people who did not take part. This component could increase recent employment by around 3 percentage points.
Key findings
Headline insights about this component based on current high-quality evidence
Positive
Work quality
Basic skills training is associated with an increase in the number of hours that employed young people spend in work, and in the length of time for which they are employed.
Positive
Vocational training
Young people who have engaged in basic skills training are more likely to participate in an apprenticeship, which in turn can increase employability
The research finds 50% probability of ‘high positive’ impact on apprenticeship participation.
Subgroup analysis
Age matters
Impacts may be higher for young people aged 16 to 18, with benefits reducing in proportion to age up to 24.
What is basic skills training?
Basic skills training focuses on improving foundational literacy, numeracy, and digital skills to help young people transition between and engage more effectively in education, training, or employment.
Typically basic skills training
- forms part of a broader youth employment support programme or package
- focuses on improving literacy, numeracy and digital skills
- bridges skills and qualifications gaps between compulsory education and further education, training or
Data in the Toolkit relates to basic skills training as an element of a youth employment programme and not to “having basic skills” or to basic skills provision as part of general education (e.g. GCSEs).
Who is basic skills training for?
Read more about Who is basic skills training for?Basic skills training is often targeted towards young people who may have had limited formal education or for whom skills gaps remain after they have left school, to help them engage or re-engage in work and learning.
Young people who have not acquired these skills and/or associated qualifications during their compulsory education may enter this kind of training as part of a ‘second chance’ programme that helps them to gain both skills and qualifications.
Who can offer basic skills training?
Read more about Who can offer basic skills training?Any UK organisation — business, charity, public-sector body or social enterprise — that meets legal requirements such as:
- providing a safe working environment
- complying with working-time rules for young people
How long is basic skills training?
Read more about How long is basic skills training?Most basic skills training lasts a few weeks, or occupies a small number of hours within a larger programme.
How is basic skills training funded?
Read more about How is basic skills training funded?Funding may come from diverse sources or from a mixture of sources including:
- government (local or central)
- charities
- employers seeking to enhance skills for potential trainees or employees.
What are the delivery settings?
Read more about What are the delivery settings?- Workplaces of participating employers
- College, university, or independent training provider in-person or virtual
- Schools and communities
Benefits for young people
Basic skills can support individuals to:
- successfully navigate professional and personal environment
- meet conditions of employment by strengthening the foundational capabilities young people need to participate effectively in work
- engage with training or employment that demands a level of fluency in reading, writing, numberacy, and/or using digital technologies
- access support to overcome personal, health or social barriers to gaining work
- enhance long-term employment prospects by gaining higher-level skills and qualifications that are associated with improved work prospects.
Indirectly, it may help young people:
- increase self-confidence
- improve life skills, for example, enhanced communication and team-working through gains in literacy.
Benefits for employers
Basic skills training can support employers to:
- recruit young people who can meet basic conditions of employment, including the literacy, numeracy and digital fluency required in many entry level roles.
- increase the number of young people able to progress into further training, including apprenticeships, by providing the essential underpinning skills needed for entry and progression.
- access a wider pool of young candidates, as basic skills training can help individuals address personal, health or social barriers that may otherwise prevent them from entering work
The cost rating for basic skills training is
Calculations are based on insights from available high-quality studies on the complexity of delivery requirements and estimated associated costs.
Considerations for decision makers
Based on existing evidence, we’ve identified some common features that support the commissioning, design and delivery of effective youth employment programmes:
01
Ensure outreach and awareness activities are effective and targeted to reach those most likely to benefit
Read more about Ensure outreach and awareness activities are effective and targeted to reach those most likely to benefitDesign, fund and deliver outreach and recruitment activities that raise young people’s awareness, with targeted initiatives to reach under-represented group who are most likely to benefit.
This might include:
- Young people who have been out of work and/or learning for longer periods.
- Young people without Level 2 qualifications.
- Young people whose life experiences put them at higher risk of marginalisation in the labour market, for example those with experience of the care system and/or with SEN.
Discover more about risk factors associated with being NEET.
Also consider how best to identify and engage the most suitable partners and employers for a programme. Engagement should be timely and clear, in ways that raise awareness and facilitate recruitment, enrolment, and sustained engagement.
Effective programmes may use direct community outreach activities for engaging under-served groups, alongside up-to-date local and administrative data, working with public employment services, or advertising vacancies along with eligibility criteria.
02
Tailor and structure programmes well to support access and maintain engagement
Read more about Tailor and structure programmes well to support access and maintain engagementDesign, fund and deliver programmes that use a range of approaches to help learners overcome external barriers and integrate learning into their lives.
This might include:
- small group or one-to-one tuition offered alongside self-directed independent learning
digital learning - flexible delivery through evening, weekend, and part-time courses
- incorporating general wellbeing or outdoor activities like sports to counteract possible recall of negative prior schooling experiences
Some programmes embed elements of basic skills learning within vocational learning.
03
Take a joined-up, collaborative approach
Read more about Take a joined-up, collaborative approachA strong relationship between policymakers, learning providers, employers, community organisations and local skills delivery organisations including Mayoral Strategic Authorities and Local Skills Improvement Plan areas supports effective youth employment support programmes.
Design, fund and deliver programmes that foster collaboration with education providers such as colleges to improve access to relevant teaching experience.
04
Encourage systematic monitoring and evaluation to help build and strengthen the evidence base
Read more about Encourage systematic monitoring and evaluation to help build and strengthen the evidence baseSupport providers and delivery organisations to accurately and systematically capture and communicate data and milestones and track programme outcomes. This may include structured and standardised tracking forms, or developing realistic programme-specific performance frameworks.
For funders and commissioners – ensure recorded data, reporting and assessment captures a full range of appropriate and relevant youth employment and related outcomes to help rich understanding to ensure rich picture of what programmes do.
Encouraging reporting commonly recognised metrics allows evaluation to be easily comparable and included in the growing evidence base.
05
Prioritise staff recruitment, retention and training to build trust and reduce turnover
Read more about Prioritise staff recruitment, retention and training to build trust and reduce turnoverDesign, fund and deliver programmes that:
- recruit staff as early as feasible, allowing time for training which can support initial engagement and familiarisation
- pay staff appropriately and seek where possible to employ staff on long-term or permanent contracts to ensure consistency and continuity of delivery
- hire staff with appropriate knowledge, experience and/or qualifications, and provide sufficient training, ongoing support, and opportunities for peer learning
- consider hiring staff with similar lived experiences to the target population and/or prior experience of working with young people in the local area
- ensure low staff-to-participant ratios where possible, to support capacity to engage with participants on resource-heavy tasks such as co-designed action plans
- clearly define roles and responsibilities and communicate intended outcomes and benchmarks to strengthen accountability
About the evidence
What’s included in the analysis?
Read more about What’s included in the analysis?| Included studies | 45 |
|---|---|
| Location(s) | High-income countries |
| Outcome | Labour force status, earnings, employment duration, hours worked, and education & skills |
| Comparator | 'Services as usual' |
The Youth Employment Toolkit brings together evidence from robust studies in high-income countries that:
- measured the intervention’s impact against what would have happened without it
- defined basic skills training as a component of a targeted intervention to support youth employment outcomes
Find details of individual studies, as well as other systematic reviews of youth employment evaluations, in the Youth Employment Evidence and Gap Map.
More information about included studies can be found in page 55-60 of the full CNMA report. The specific evidence profile for basic skills training can be found on page 66.
The evidence strength ratings for basic skills training reflect the number of studies included in the meta-analysis. Studies were scored on reported design, sample size, approach to attrition, and definitions of interventions and outcome measures. More detail can be found in the technical guide.
Limitations
Read more about LimitationsThe Toolkit does not include basic skills training where:
- learning relates specifically to a particular kind of occupation or job (these are definined as on and off-the-job training)
- learning focusses on enhancing young people’s capabilities in areas such as communication, interpersonal and team-working skills, etc. (these are included in’soft skills training’), or behaviours such as self-regulation and professionalism (these are included in ‘behavioural skills training’)
- learning is gained while studying for formal qualifications as part of the universal education system
This evidence summary does NOT relate to the impacts of having basic skills at a particular level.
Implications for evaluators and commissioners
Read more about Implications for evaluators and commissionersThe current evidence can be strengthened by taking a consistent approach to incorporating standardised metrics for education, employment and training outcomes as well as outcomes that indicate work quality.
Explore how employers can transform the lives of marginalised young people and futureproof their workforce.
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