Thousands of young people are set to benefit from expanded access to employment and wrap-around support services in the coming months, the government has pledged.

The Department for Work and Pensions has said it intends to roll out 180 new ‘Youth Hubs’ across the country, increasing the network to more than 360 sites within the next three years.

The hubs are designed to bring together local mental health and housing support, skills and training opportunities as well as careers guidance and work opportunities, including with links to local employers with live job and apprenticeship opportunities.

They tend to be co-located in existing local infrastructure, such as sports clubs and libraries, with the aim to make jobcentre-style support more accessible to young people. The intention is that a young person will be no more than one hour away from a Youth Hub by public transport, the DWP added.

The move has followed former Labour health secretary Alan Milburn’s interim report on the challenges facing ‘Neets’, or young people not in employment or education and training.

Work and pensions secretary Pat McFadden said: “We want to make sure young people are getting real, personalised support, that’s not one size fits all. I’ve seen how it can change lives.

“Our Youth Hubs have over the past two years pioneered this approach – bringing job centre services together with mental health support, housing advice and more.
I want to turbocharge this rollout so that every young person has this support within reach that can help them move into learning or earning.”

The DWP added it will now work with local authorities and partner organisations to identify the best locations for the hubs.

 

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