Government to publish ‘NEET scorecards’ of local authority performance

27 Jul 15
Councils are to be rated each year on the success of their efforts to keep young people in education, employment and training under a new government initiative, skills minister Nick Boles has announced.

Annual ‘scorecards’ will provide an at-a-glance picture of what local authorities are doing to track youngsters’ activity, measuring performance against the national average. This is intended both to help councils improve in areas where they are weak and allow communities to hold them to account, the Department for Education said today.

“With recent figures showing record lows in the number of young people not in education, employment or training, it is clear that our economic plan is working,” Boles said.

“But we know there is more to do, and the annual NEET scorecards will prove a highly effective tool in delivering our commitment to helping young people reach their potential.”

The scorecards will be published every summer and show the percentage, compared to the previous year, of: 16- to 18-year-olds who are NEET; 16- to 18-year-olds whose activity is known to the local authority: and 16- to 17-year-olds participating in education and training.

Their introduction follows a six-month trial period.

Jim Leivers, director for children, education and families at Oxfordshire County Council, endorsed the scorecards, calling them an “excellent innovation”.

He said: “The data are presented clearly and logically which, from a practical viewpoint, allows us to see easily how we are performing in key areas.”

  • Vivienne Russell
    Vivienne Russell is managing editor of Public Finance magazine and publicfinance.co.uk

Did you enjoy this article?

AddToAny

Top