Professor Robin Simmons, a leading expert on the experiences of young people categorised as NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training), talks about the recent BBC News story discussing the report from the charity Education and Employers and gives his view on the claim that young people who have regular contact with employers whilst at school will be less likely to become NEET.
“Research conducted by the charity, Education and Employers, claims that young people who have regular contact with employers while at school are less likely than other pupils to become NEET (not in education, employment and training).
It is perhaps predictable that an organisation called Education and Employers would come to such a conclusion – although, to be fair, research has consistently shown us that a lack of work experience is, for many young people, the most significant barrier to finding employment. Either way, such a claim is unsurprising. The youth labour market has been in decline since the 1970s and nowadays young people increasingly find themselves in competition with older, more experienced workers even for so-called entry-level jobs.
The Education and Employers report claims that students are 86% less likely to become NEET if they have four or more contacts with employers before they leave school, and also states that pupils at independent schools and grammar schools are much more likely to have contact with employers. The charity’s director of policy and research, Dr Anthony Mann, argues that this shows us that: “Those with greatest need to experience the world of work…received it least”. These are significant claims worth some serious consideration – not least because the relationship between education and employment is rather more complex than is suggested here.
First, many prestigious ‘blue-chip’ employers simply prefer to recruit young people from grammar schools and the independent sector, and trying to increase contact with other schools is unlikely to change this. Second, it is important to consider the nature of any relationship that schools may foster with the world of work. There is, for example, a significant difference between the well-established work-experience programmes enjoyed by many pupils at elite fee-paying schools and, say, a visit by a local tradesman or a trip to a supermarket – not that such activities are necessarily without value.
Let’s be clear, I am not against schools developing employer links but it is important to consider the nature and quality of such relationships if they are to avoid reproducing the deeply-entrenched inequalities which characterise our society more broadly.”
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