NEET surge post-pandemic cost £20bn in UK GDP, Impetus analysis reveals

Thursday 20 November 2025

LONDON – Official statistics released today show 946,000 young people in the UK are not in education, employment, or training (NEET), a 2 percentage-point increase since before the pandemic. New analysis from the education and employment charity Impetus reveals this post-pandemic surge has cost the UK economy £20bn in lost GDP.

Beyond the economic cost, high NEET levels have scarring effects on young people, which are not felt equally:

• Spending time unemployed under the age of 23 has been linked to lower wages even two decades later.

• Those who are NEET at 18–19 are 20% more likely to be unemployed 10 years on.

• Young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are twice as likely to be NEET than their better-off peers, with qualifications only accounting for half the difference.

Certain demographic factors compound this risk. Previous Impetus research found that a young person from a disadvantaged background with low qualifications and special educational needs and disabilities is nearly three times more likely to be NEET, with a rate 170% higher than average.

However, strong educational qualifications are protective: every step up the qualifications ladder halves a young person’s chance of being NEET. For those furthest from the labour market, wraparound support, including access to mentoring and career coaching, will also be essential.

Susannah Hardyman MBE, CEO of Impetus, said:

946,000 young people neither earning nor learning is an indefensible figure, costing the UK billions in GDP and even more in lost potential. While we cannot replace what young people lost during Covid, the upcoming budget offers an opportunity to stop the damage from following them for life.

The Government’s Youth Guarantee, providing NEET young people a paid work placement, is a critical step. But to fulfil its promise, it must go further and faster, delivering wraparound support and early intervention. For those facing the highest barriers, the guarantee should offer young people comprehensive support and skills training to help them not only to find a job but to keep it. Likewise, support must be offered at the earliest opportunity, starting in school. By waiting until a young person leaves school unemployed – and certainly by waiting another 18 months for them to qualify for the Guarantee – we've missed our best chance to prevent those outcomes.

To make real progress, Government needs a cohesive strategy aligning education and employment policy, targeting the precise barriers young people face. But this requires real commitment and investment from the Treasury. With £20bn lost in GDP, tackling the NEET crisis has become an economic imperative for growth.

NOTES TO EDITORS:

For video and audio content, including further analysis on today’s data, please visit this link: [EXT] Impetus NEET stats content November 2025. You can also find a case study about a formerly NEET young person who found work through Impetus’ partner Generation UK here.

About the data

The increase in NEET rate compared to before the pandemic is 2%pts. This is based on the NEET rate for July-Sept 2025 (12.7%) and the NEET rate for Oct-Dec 2019 (10.7%). Both figures are based on today’s NEET statistics release.

PWC’s Youth Employment Index 2022, has a GDP multiplier of 0.34 for every % point difference in NEET rates (page 95). Based on a UK GDP of £2,884bn (also ONS) this gives a cost of 0.34 x 2% x £2,884bn = £20bn

About the Youth Jobs Gap

Impetus’ Youth Jobs Gap is a groundbreaking collection of reports investigating the link between education and employment outcomes. The latest Youth Jobs Gap report, published in May 2025, reveals how layers of disadvantage affect young people’s chances of not being in employment, education, or training (NEET).

Working with The National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), Impetus analysed the government’s Longitudinal Educational Outcomes dataset to explore how combinations of characteristics impact NEET rates compared to the average. For the first time it shows the links between socioeconomic background, level of qualification, identity characteristics and employment outcomes, giving us the clearest picture to date of the factors associated with employment outcomes for different groups of young people. 

About Impetus 

Impetus transforms the education and employment outcomes of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds. We do this by using our deep expertise and high calibre networks to give the best non-profits in these sectors the essential ingredients to have a real and lasting impact. Through a powerful combination of long-term funding, direct capacity building support from our experienced team and our pro bono partners, alongside research and policy influencing to drive lasting systems change, we work towards a society where all young people can thrive in school, pass their exams, and unlock the doors to sustained employment, for a fulfilling life.

To find out more about Impetus, visit impetus.org.uk.

For media enquiries, please contact alex.freeman@impetus.org.uk or call 07414405029.