Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government how delivery of the Youth Guarantee will be coordinated through mayoral combined authorities and local authorities; and what metrics will be used to assess local performance.

The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education work closely with mayoral combined authorities and local authorities across delivery. This includes investing an additional £2.5 billion into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy to support nearly one million 16–24-year-olds and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn or learn, including 300,000 opportunities for workplace experience and training and unlocking up to 200,000 employment opportunities.

The Youth Guarantee includes eight Trailblazers being delivered by Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSAs) in England. These Trailblazers are testing localised approaches to reduce the number of young people who are or are at risk of becoming NEET, with evidence informing GB-wide delivery. Trailblazer are identifying and engaging young people who require additional support to connect them to opportunities and bringing together the range of national entitlements with more locally tailored provision and initiatives. This includes strengthening local coordination through local leadership, and outreach with partners including third sector organisations, employers and colleges to better connect young people with education, employment and training opportunities.

The Department has commissioned an evaluation of the Youth Guarantee Trailblazers to build evidence on how the program improves employment outcomes, reduces economic inactivity, increases participation in education and training, and supports systems integration. We expect to publish interim findings in 2027 and for full findings from the evaluation alongside a synthesis review of local evaluations to be available in the Winter of 2027/28.