Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of the implications for his Department's policies of the Youth Employment Group's report entitled Young Person's Guarantee published 27 September 2023; and if he will make a statement.

We acknowledge the Youth Employment Group’s report calling for the Government to adopt a Young Person’s Guarantee and note the five recommended policy proposals.

The Government is committed to delivering targeted support for all young people, no matter what their start in life or the challenges they face, to give them the best chance of getting into work.

Within DWP, the Youth Offer provides individually tailored Work Coach support to young people aged 16-24 who are on the Universal Credit and searching for work. As published in PQ 202513, we have expanded Youth Offer support to enable more young people on Universal Credit to see a Work Coach in a Youth Hub or to benefit from the expertise of our Youth Employability Coaches.

By extending the Youth Offer to other Universal Credit claimants we are helping more young people not in education, employment or training who claim Universal Credit to access this essential support. Some Youth Hubs will also offer a drop-in facility where these young people who do not have a UC claim will be able to access support.

Lastly, we recognise that ensuring young people have the most appropriate support, education or training to enable them to enter sustained employment and progress in their careers requires a cross-government approach. In partnership with DfE and DCMS, we have established a new cross Government Forum on Youth Skills for Life and Work. The forum provides an opportunity for departments to identify and act on opportunities to work closer together on crosscutting youth issues and to equip young people with the skills for life and work that they will need to fulfil their potential and drive growth for the country.