Nearly one million young people in the UK are not in education, employment or training (NEET), a new report warns, placing Britain among the worst-performing wealthy European nations.
The figure marks a sharp rise since 2019, when the NEET rate stood at 13%. It has climbed to 15% in 2025, leaving around 900,000 young people outside work or education.
Among 22 comparable wealthy European economies, only Italy and Lithuania have higher rates. The UK performs significantly worse than countries such as Germany, Denmark and the Netherlands.
The Resolution Foundation attributes the increase to a combination of structural and economic pressures. These include rising ill health among young people - particularly mental health conditions - a weak vocational education system, limited engagement within the benefits system and a softer labour market.
More than half of the rise in NEET levels since 2019 is linked to a weakening jobs market. However, researchers say this does not fully explain the trend. A growing share of young people are now economically inactive rather than unemployed, often due to health-related issues.
At the same time, the number of young benefit claimants not required to engage with work or training has increased from 160,000 to 300,000. This highlights a key difference with lower-NEET countries, where claimants receive more structured support.
The report also points to long-standing weaknesses in vocational education, with fewer young people in the UK entering training pathways compared with their European peers.
The issue is now firmly on the agenda in Westminster, with a government-commissioned review led by Alan Milburn expected to examine barriers preventing young people from entering work.
Ministers say they are responding with a £2.5bn “youth guarantee” scheme aimed at expanding access to jobs and training, alongside £3.5bn in support for people with health conditions.
However, analysts warn that reversing the trend will require long-term reforms across health, education and welfare systems, rather than short-term policy fixes.
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