Summer jobs

Design, fund and deliver outreach and recruitment activities that raise young people’s awareness of summer jobs, with targeted initiatives to reach under-represented group who are most likely to benefit.

This might include working with schools, youth organisations, community groups and parents and carers to directly engage under-served groups, alongside up-to-date local and administrative data, working with public employment services, or advertising vacancies along with eligibility criteria.

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.

Design, fund and implement programmes that

• provide appropriate professional and pastoral training and materials to managers and other staff to ensure they are well prepared to engage with young people and can build positive relationships
• offer orientation days, job fairs, or introductions to employers and workplaces before the programme starts so young people can learn more about the work environment and the work they will do to foster motivation and participation.

Design, fund and deliver programmes that:

• are quality assured by appropriate methods where relevant
• provide supportive, consistent and effective supervision to help young people settle quickly, navigate the workplace and perform well
• support young people to develop a range of academic, employability, social, emotional, and ‘life’ skills
• help young people think about professional goals and ambitions, maintain motivation and understand their professional and personal development and understand next steps
• account for the complexity and diversity of individuals’ needs, which may include provision of equipment or adapted materials, or referrals to additional services
• purposefully match young people to placements that align with their interests, experience and skills to improve engagement and reduce drop-out
• include pastoral, wellbeing and specialist support, particularly for young people with additional needs or who face additional barriers to the labour market
• monitor and support tutor and manager capacity to reduce administrative and emotional burden, which may include training
• encourage young people to think about their professional goals and ambitions, build aspirations, and understand next steps. Progression may be offering a permanent or extended role or may be signposting to further education or training.

Effective programmes may utilise personal advisors or co-designed action plans that align with participants’ goals, aspirations and circumstances. These are most effective when used consistently.

Design, fund and implement programmes that prioritise collaboration and establish infrastructure between key stakeholders – such as networks of employers, schools, community groups, training organisations and local government – to improve co-ordination, support recruitment and outreach, and capture insights into students’ interests, skills, and aspirations.

Match provision to opportunities in the local labour market and the skills needs of employers.

This can be supported by effective involvement and support in planning stages, and flexibility within national or regional frameworks to meet the needs of specific groups of learners, sectors, and employers.

Support 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.

Design, fund and deliver apprenticeships that can incorporate staff and young people’s insights and feedback to better respond to needs and improve service delivery, performance and outcomes.

Relevant and strategic adjustments may include changing the intensity, duration of or type of elements, or adapting eligibility criteria or services to fit the needs of young people in the local area.

Design, fund and implement programmes that reduce practical barriers such as costs of taking part. For example, ensure that young people are fairly paid or receive travel or meal support. This can also increase how the opportunity is valued. Effective programmes also communicate clearly with families or households about payment and expectations.