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Young Brits are unprepared for work because the traditional entry points have disappeared.

Jan 07 2026

Young Brits are unprepared for work because the traditional entry points have disappeared. In the U.K., fewer than one in five 16-17-year-olds were working at the end of 2024, down from half at the start of the century. Now, nearly 1M young people (16-24-years-old) in the U.K. are classified as NEETs (not in education, employment, or training). Alan Milburn, head of an independent review on youth inactivity for the U.K. government, says the decline means teenagers are missing early exposure to workplace norms like punctuality and professional expectations. But Milburn warns it’s “too lazy” to blame young people’s lack of trying when the opportunities simply aren’t there. (The Telegraph)

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