The Government is committed to ensuring that young people are supported to succeed in a labour market being reshaped by artificial intelligence, including graduates and school leavers entering employment for the first time.

We have established a new Early Jobs Alliance, bringing together government, employers, trade unions and young people to understand how AI is changing entry-level roles and to protect pathways into work. Backed by £20 million, it will map changes in entry-level work, identify best practice, and provide practical guidance to employers on redesigning roles while maintaining progression routes for early careers entrants. It will initially focus on the digital and technologies sector, with plans to expand across all eight Industrial Strategy sectors.

Alongside this, the Government is investing in skills and routes into employment. Through TechFirst, our nationwide tech skills programme, at least 400,000 students from disadvantaged backgrounds will be supported to develop AI and digital skills through school sessions, competitions and industry engagement.

These programmes will complement our ongoing work to understand how AI is affecting the labour market. The new AI Economics Institute will provide rigorous analysis of AI’s impacts on productivity, labour markets and growth. As the first government-backed institute of its kind, it will help close critical evidence gaps and ensure that policy is informed by real-world data and employer practice.

The department is taking a range of steps to support school leavers to access further education (FE) opportunities and work placements.

The government is improving careers advice in schools so that all young people understand the full range of pathways available to them, including FE, apprenticeships and employment, and feel confident navigating a changing labour market.

We are also committed to guaranteeing every young person access to two weeks’ worth of high‑quality work experience during secondary education. This more flexible model provides multiple, meaningful workplace experiences across key stages 3 and 4, helping pupils develop employer‑valued skills and supporting successful transitions into FE and work.

In 2024/25, a pilot flexible work‑experience model reached over 2,500 pupils across 66 schools and is being scaled in 2025/26, with enhanced support for up to 750 disadvantaged schools. From 2026/27, additional support will expand provision in alternative provision schools.

Effectiveness is monitored through the Future Skills Questionnaire, which shows rising career readiness, pathway awareness and confidence, all of which are associated with improved long‑term employment outcomes.

Young people must continue in education or training until their 18th birthday and may do so through full-time study, full-time work or volunteering combined with part-time learning, or an apprenticeship, while local authorities hold statutory duties to identify and support those needing help, including young people who are not in education, employment or training.

Apprenticeships allow young people to earn and learn. Employers receive financial support to hire young apprentices, including up to £2,000 for small and medium sized enterprises taking on 16 to 24-year-old new starters. Foundation apprenticeships were introduced in August 2025, to give young people a route into critical sectors.

Through the Careers and Enterprise Company, the department is supporting schools to deliver high quality, employer-led careers advice, giving young people clearer insight into the full range of pathways available. We are also bridging the gap between education and work with our commitment to two weeks’ worth of work experience for every secondary pupil.

The Post 16 Education and Skills White Paper set out major reforms, including new Vocational Levels alongside A Levels and T Levels, a further study pathway with a Foundation Certificate, and an occupational pathway with an Occupational Certificate to support progression into study, work or apprenticeships.

For those who want to move into work after they are 18 but cannot find work, the Department for Work and Pensions is strengthening support through the Youth Guarantee, supported by £2.5 billion of investment to create 500,000 opportunities for young people to earn and learn. This includes the delivery of eight Youth Guarantee trailblazers in England, the expansion of Youth Hubs to more than 360 areas across Great Britain, and the introduction of a new Youth Guarantee Gateway in jobcentres, providing more intensive support to 16 to 24-year-olds.

Together these measures demonstrate the government’s commitment to backing young people.

The department publishes information on the destinations of students after key stage 4 and 16 to 18 study. This includes whether a student sustained an education, employment or apprenticeship destination. The data also includes the number of students who did not sustain a destination or where no activity was captured.

To be counted in a destination, young people must have sustained participation for a six-month period in the destination year.

Data on the destinations of students who have completed key stage 4 is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/40d1474a-30ff-402a-f7ee-08de834d471d.

Data on the destinations of students who have completed 16 to 18 study is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/5d0582dc-7327-42f2-ab5e-08de834ce335.

The department publishes information on the destinations of students after key stage 4 and 16 to 18 study. This includes whether an apprenticeship was sustained.

To be counted, young people need to sustain the apprenticeship for six months in the academic year after leaving.

Data on the destinations of students who have completed key stage 4 study is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/059bdddb-673e-47bd-f7ed-08de834d471d.

Data on the destinations of students who have completed 16 to 18 study is available at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/7cebeac7-c6b9-475a-f7ef-08de834d471d.

We are supporting young people to stay on and succeed in education and training until at least age 18, and ensure they can take up opportunities to move into work and/or further study. For example, eight Youth Guarantee Trailblazers, backed by £90 million, are helping young people access support for training, apprenticeships or work.

We have introduced foundation apprenticeships and are expanding them into more sectors, like hospitality and retail.

We will ensure that a post-16 destination is identified for every year 11 pupil, and those most at risk of becoming NEET receive personalised transition support

We are piloting the automatic allocation of a place at a further education (FE) provider for anyone aged 16-17 who doesn’t already have one.

We are also investing in improved Risk of NEET Indicator tools and attendance tracking in FE, so that young people at risk of falling out of education are identified and supported.

We have introduced new foundation apprenticeships to give young people a route into careers in critical sectors of the economy, enabling them to earn a wage while developing vital skills.

To support employers to offer apprenticeships, the government provides £1,000 payments to employers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19 to 24-year-old apprentices who have an education, health and care plan or have been, or are, in care.

Government also pays employers up to £2,000 for eligible foundation apprenticeships to contribute to the extra costs of supporting someone at the beginning of their career.

In addition, employers benefit from not being required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25, when the employee’s wage is below £50,270 a year.

Any student on a 16-19 study programme who has not yet achieved an English and/or mathematics GCSE grade 4 or higher must continue studying these subjects.

As part of the Post-16 Education and Skills Strategy, the department is introducing new 16-19 Level 1 English and mathematics ‘stepping stone’ qualifications as preparation for GCSE. These qualifications will support students to consolidate foundational skills and knowledge, preparing those with lower prior attainment for successful GCSE resits in English and mathematics the following year.

The department has also set out plans to introduce reformed qualifications pathways at Levels 2 and 3. This includes a third, vocational pathway at Level 3, V Levels, which will sit alongside A levels and T Levels, and two new pathways at Level 2, providing a clear line of sight to both further study at Level 3 and skilled employment through the Further Study and Occupational pathways. Students will be able to take these pathways in combination with other qualifications such as English and mathematics qualifications.

The department publishes statistics on those not in education, employment or training (NEET) for England from the labour force survey (LFS) for young people aged 16-24. These are accessible at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/neet-statistics-annual-brief/2024.

Additionally, estimates of young people aged 16 to 18 participating in education and training using the department’s administrative data are published at: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/find-statistics/participation-in-education-and-training-and-employment/2024. This release contains the most robust measure for 16 to 18 year olds NEET.

Both NEET sources are based on status at time of data collection and therefore the definition does not rely on being out of education and employment for a specific length of time before being categorised as NEET.

Neither source can be used to estimate the number of young people who left school/further education before the end of their course. However, they will be included in the statistics as NEET if they had left their course prior to the reporting timeframe and not taken part in any employment or alternative education at that time.

The Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport is co-producing a National Youth Strategy in partnership with young people and cross-sector experts to set out a new long term vision for young people, which will cover young people aged 10 to 21 (up to 25 for young people with special educational needs and disabilities). This will include plans for the introduction of Young Futures Hubs. These will bring together services to improve access to opportunities and support for young people at community level, promoting positive outcomes and enabling them to thrive.

High quality careers advice is an essential part of our mission to break down the barriers to opportunity and drive economic growth. The National Careers Service offers advice to support young people (and their parents/carers) to understand their career options. Youth Hubs provide vital links in the community, bringing together employment support from a Jobcentre Plus work coach and place-based support from local partnerships to help young people into work when they leave school.

We recognise that care leavers have poorer outcomes than their peers across all aspects of their lives and are taking action to address this. All care leavers up to the age of 25 are entitled to support from a Personal Adviser to help them prepare for and cope with the challenges of living independently.

All state-funded schools, including those in Yeovil, are required to teach first aid as part of the statutory health education curriculum, as part of relationships, sex and health education (RSHE). This includes dealing with common injuries, calling the emergency services and administering CPR, including developing an understanding of the purpose of defibrillators.

The department is currently reviewing the RSHE curriculum, including establishing whether any additional content is needed.

While the department has not made an assessment of the impact of learning about menstrual wellbeing as part of statutory health education, it is beneficial for pupils to understand the features of a healthy menstrual cycle, be able to recognise when things are not right and know when to seek help.

The department is currently reviewing the relationships, sex and health education statutory guidance and is looking carefully at the consultation responses, considering the relevant evidence and engaging with stakeholders before setting out next steps. This includes considering whether any additional content is needed, including on menstrual wellbeing and endometriosis.

The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

The department is developing a comprehensive strategy for post‐16 education and skills, to break down barriers to opportunity, support the development of a skilled workforce and drive economic growth through the government’s Industrial Strategy.

The department is committed to working collaboratively with the sector to bring forward this strategy, building on the Curriculum and Assessment Review, the introduction of Skills England and with a continued focus on lifelong learning.

The department’s vision for a Youth Guarantee will ensure all young people aged 18 to 21 have the opportunity to access the education, training, apprenticeship or employment support they need to open up job and career opportunities. It also looks to strengthen the support for 16 to 17-year-olds who are at risk of or have disengaged from sustained participation in education and learning.

The guarantee will bring together and enhance provision and support for young people by providing tailored support for 18 to 21-year-olds into further learning and onto fulfilling work who may need additional help. The guarantee will address personal barriers, such as mental or physical health, care giving responsibilities, homelessness or transport. Additionally, it will enable preparation for employment and, through work experience, offer additional careers advisers and a new National Jobs and Careers Service.

The guarantee will also help 18 to 21-year-olds to access education and training opportunities locally and will build on wider system improvements including Skills England, the new foundation apprenticeship, the Lifelong Learning Entitlement and the Growth and Skills offer.

The Department for Education and the Department for Work and Pensions are developing the guarantee with mayoral authorities to provide local, tailored support and will work with local areas on future expansion. The department will launch eight Trailblazers in England from spring 2025 backed by up to £45 million in funding.

High-quality careers advice is an essential part of the government’s missions to break down the barriers to opportunity and to drive economic growth. Secondary schools are legally required to provide independent careers guidance on the full range of education and training options and offer at least six opportunities for providers of technical education or apprenticeships to speak to all pupils during years 8 to 13.

Additionally, in secondary education, the department is boosting work readiness with its plan to guarantee two weeks’ worth of work experience for every young person. The department wants to see multiple, targeted workplace experiences with all types of businesses, including small and medium-sized enterprises and growth sectors. The department is funding pilots initially with a focus on identifying what works. To ensure every young person can get the expert advice they need, the department will train 1,000 careers advisers. These ambitions are vital to ensuring that young people develop relevant skills for work and are supported to make successful transitions from education and training into meaningful employment.

The Office for Students also holds higher education providers to account for students' employment outcomes. Providers are expected to offer high-quality careers support and ensure that at least 60% of their students’ progress into professional employment or further study within 15 months of graduating.

The department publishes information on the percentage of level 3 pupils continuing to a sustained education or training destination at level 4 or higher, such as degrees, higher apprenticeships and higher national diplomas.

The data in the links below contain the data requested.

Data pertaining to England can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/7eb58822-e8ec-4240-f93b-08dd0adc50ad.

Data pertaining to Birmingham and West Midlands can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/dd7c6d4b-5aff-4639-f93f-08dd0adc50ad.

The data provided is for state-funded mainstream schools and state-funded mainstream colleges. Special educational needs (SEN) status is only recorded for students leaving schools. Students in colleges are recorded as learners with learning difficulties and disabilities. The definitions differ from SEN recorded by schools and so the data is therefore presented separately to the data for SEN. Breakdowns by education health and care plan and SEN support are not readily available in the progression to higher education or training data so only “identified SEN” and “no identified SEN” have been provided.

The department publishes information on the destinations of pupils from state-funded mainstream schools in the year following completion of key stage 4, which shows the numbers and percentages of pupils continuing to a sustained education, employment or apprenticeship destination in England.

The tables in the links below contain the data requested.

Data pertaining to England can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/0b20e9b5-2fef-47b9-7106-08dd0ae16946.

Data pertaining to Birmingham and the West Midlands can be accessed here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/775f4fb7-7c15-495d-f93a-08dd0adc50ad.

This government is committed to ending the VAT exemption that private schools enjoy. HM Treasury will deliver the tax changes and is engaging with a range of stakeholders as it carefully considers the impact of this policy.

The right hon. Gentleman, as a former Minister in the Department, knows all too well that he and others were cautioned about how they should be using data. When we look at the raw numbers, we see that under the last Conservative Government, reading standards were going down, as were standards in maths and science. One in four children did not reach the required standard at the end of primary school, and one in five young people was persistently absent from our schools. We will drive high and rising standards right across academic subjects, but we will also ensure that all our children and young people have a range of opportunities in music, sport, art and drama, not just those with parents who can afford it.