In 1 year starting from 2025 Jan-March to 2026 Jan- March...
“in 1 year starting from 2025 Jan-March to 2026 Jan- March, the youth unemployment value went up from 14.2% to 16.2%, with the numbers continuing to go up. Meanwhile, the number of job openings dropped nearly 10% on the year to 729,000 in the Sept-Nov time according to the ONS”
Summary
Youth unemployment rose from the mid‑2025 level of about 13.8% to roughly 16.1% by the end of 2025, confirming an upward trend, though the exact figures of 14.2% to 16.2% for Jan‑Mar periods are not supported by the reported data. The claim that job openings fell by nearly 10% to 729,000 in September‑November is incorrect; ONS data show only a marginal 0.2% decline to that level.
Sources 47 searched
- LFS: Unemployment rate: UK: All: Aged 16-24: %: SA - Office for National Statistics
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- Young people not in education, employment or training (NEET), UK - Office for National Statistics
An estimated 13.5% of all people aged 16 to 24 years in the UK were not in education, employment or training (NEET) in January to March 2026. This is up by 1.0 percentage point on the year, and up by 0.7 percentage points compared with October ...
- Vacancies and jobs in the UK - Office for National Statistics
Vacancy numbers are broadly unchanged on the quarter; early estimates suggest a small decrease of just 2,000 (0.2%) vacancies to 729,000 in September to November 2025.
- Get Britain Working: Labour Market Insights January 2026 - GOV.UK
Labour market types often share similar characteristics even when they are geographically distant, and these similarities strongly influence youth outcomes. The NEET rate of a local labour market type does not correspond to the NEET rate of the local authorities that make up that local labour market type. Figure 10: Rate of young people aged 16 to 24 years who are NEET by local labour market type, England, October 2022 to September 2025
- Get Britain Working: Labour Market Insights April 2026 – Background Information and Methodology - GOV.UK
The methodology behind constructing these estimates has been altered meaning that, although the change is minor and the figures are similar, the figures published in this publication cannot be compared with similar figures in the Get Britain Working: Labour Market Insights January 2026 and the Get Britain Working White Paper Analytical Annex. This methodology change is to increase alignment with the ONS methodology which is explained below.[footnote 1] Estimates of young people who are NEET are calculated by first deriving a variable to distinguish those in education or training from those not in education or training. Then, by cross tabulating these variables by labour market status (in employment, unemployed or economically inactive as defined by the ILO framework), a NEET estimate for each region can be calculated.
- Unemployment in key charts: Young Londoners hit hardest by labour market slowdown | London Datastore
However, the age breakdown tells a different story. Between January 2025 and January 2026, claimant numbers increased for 16–24-year-olds in nearly all London boroughs, while numbers for older age groups generally declined.
- Employment Situation Summary - 2026 M07 Results
With these revisions, employment in May and June combined is 103,000 lower than previously reported. (Monthly revisions result from additional reports received from businesses and government agencies since the last published estimates and from the recalculation of seasonal factors.) _____________ The Employment Situation for August 2026 is scheduled to be published on Friday, September 4, 2026, at 8:30 a.m.
- Rising UK youth unemployment tests government over wage pledge | Reuters
Official figures this week showed Britain's jobless rate for people aged 16-24 rose to 16.1% in the final quarter of last year, up from 13.8% in the middle of 2025 and a record low of under 9.2% during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- Vacancies fall again as private sector wage growth drops below 3% – ONS | The Northern Echo
This was driven by smaller businesses, which saw vacancies fall 8,000, though this was partially offset by an increase among medium-sized firms, the ONS said.
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