Major Government funding to boost career and training opportunities for young people
09 December 2025
London Youth welcomes the Government’s comprehensive £820 million funding package to support almost a million young people into learning or training. This policy pledge was set out in the Autumn 2025 Budget and is now being translated into some concrete next steps.
Youth unemployment in London has risen sharply over the last few years. This has hit young Black Londoners the hardest, as they are more than twice as likely to be unemployed as their white counterparts and often lack clear pathways to progress.
These challenges sit alongside persistently high levels of child poverty in the capital. With 4 in 10 children in London living in poverty, last week’s landmark Child Poverty Strategy set out measures aimed at addressing the pressures facing families. These included lifting the two-child benefit cap, introducing a new legal duty for councils to inform schools and health visitors about families living in temporary accommodation, investment in Best Start in Life family hubs, and expanded childcare support for working parents. Together, these changes should contribute to alleviating deprivation and disadvantage for hundreds of thousands of children and young people across the capital.
Among the subsequent measures to address youth unemployment, we particularly welcome:
- £34 million investment to help identify and support young people at risk of becoming NEET at a local level.
- The expansion of Youth Hubs, bringing the total to over 360 locations across the UK, giving young people access to skills training, mental health support, housing advice, and careers guidance.
- A Youth Guarantee gateway for every young person on Universal Credit looking for work, offering four weeks of intensive training from a dedicated Work Coach and a referral to one of six pathways, with a guaranteed interview.
- Funding for 350,000 new training or workplace opportunities, with additional support in sectors such as construction, health and social care, and hospitality.
- A Jobs Guarantee of six months’ paid, government-funded work for up to 55,000 young people who have spent 18 months on Universal Credit in areas with the greatest need. As this currently excludes London, we await to see how this support will extend to deserving young Londoners who are currently out of scope.
- Fully funded apprenticeships for eligible young people under 25 in small and medium-sized businesses, alongside additional support for employers to offer new short courses in areas such as AI, engineering and digital skills from April 2026.
London Youth’s Chief Executive, Pauline Daniyan, commented:
Tackling entrenched youth unemployment across our capital city is long overdue. The Government’s latest funding package will make a significant contribution to creating a brighter future for hundreds of thousands of young people in London and across the UK. Community-based youth workers have always played a unique role in supporting and empowering overlooked and under-served young people to realise their full potential. Young people need their support more than ever. We look forward to seeing how the forthcoming National Youth Strategy will address children and young people’s needs with a fully funded and sustainable youth offer.
