Casey Smith has spent four years visiting the job centre and submitting applications, yet remains unemployed. The 19-year-old from Johnstone, Renfrewshire, describes feeling trapped in a cycle that shows no sign of breaking. According to BBC News, she is among nearly a million young people across the UK classified as Neet—not in education, employment or training.
Her experience reflects a broader crisis affecting young adults. The Office for National Statistics estimates that 981,000 people aged 16 to 24 were in this category between April and June 2026, representing 13.0% of that age group. The figure had risen by 30,000 compared with the same period a year earlier, though it fell by 30,000 from the previous quarter.
The relentless search
Casey began attending the job centre at 16 and has maintained contact every few weeks since. Now approaching 20, she had hoped to secure employment years earlier.
I'm nearly 20 now. I at least thought by the time I was 18, 17 that I would have something and I don't. I'm very frustrated about it because the amount of pressure that is on young adults nowadays is absolutely insane.
Her job-hunting efforts have been exhaustive. She estimates submitting approximately a thousand applications across sectors including cleaning, retail and hospitality. Despite this volume, she has secured only five interviews. Her daily routine involves waking to check emails and submitting fresh applications, alongside handing out CVs and telephoning local businesses twice in search of opportunities.
I think I've definitely applied to a thousand, maybe just a wee bit under that. You're waking up every day and you're doing the same thing, applying and applying, and you're not hearing anything. I've had roughly five interviews.
If I had it my way I would be doing a nine-to-five every day. I would love to do that.
What's wrong with the current system?
Casey criticises the support available through job centres, describing interactions as superficial and unhelpful. She attends fortnightly appointments lasting approximately 30 minutes in theory, but the actual conversation time rarely exceeds five minutes.
I will sit in the waiting area for maybe 20 minutes and then I will be speaking to whoever it is I'm speaking to for no more than five. And it's honestly it's like seeing somebody in the street that you've not seen in a wee while – hi, how are you, what have you been up to? Ok, see you later.
The job centre sometimes refers her to community projects offering CV-writing assistance or connecting her with employers seeking young workers. However, Casey finds these interventions ineffective.
They will teach you how to do things like making CVs or there might be a couple people looking for young people to start working for them. However, it never gets anywhere. They're telling me to go out and do these things which I have already done several times over.
She believes job centres should provide more detailed feedback when employers reject applicants and facilitate deeper conversations about work, volunteering and gaining experience.
I know we have the job centre that's supposed to help us go out and get jobs and find work and things like that, but that's not working. That's falling to bits. I don't think it's going to be up and running in like the next 10 years. It's collapsing and nobody's doing anything about it. So once that crumbles and just does not work anymore, what do you expect us to do? We need a new system in place.
The emotional and social toll
Extended joblessness affects mental health and confidence, Casey explains. The psychological burden stems partly from societal pressure and judgment.
I think the pressure of it all is what really bugs me. Why is there so much pressure on me when you know that I try every single day yet I'm not getting anywhere with it? It's also embarrassing to talk about, because, I don't have anything, neither do my peers. And then when people who are older than us are like, 'Oh, have you got a job yet?' And it's just constant pressure, constant judgement.
Deprivation compounds these challenges. Data from Scotland revealed that 16- to 19-year-olds from the poorest backgrounds were more than five times less likely to participate in education, training or employment than those living in the least deprived areas.
The broader picture of youth unemployment
Casey's situation is not isolated. The Scottish government was expected to release updated annual figures on young people's work status, with the most recent published data showing that 93.3% of young people aged 16 to 24 participated in education, employment or training in 2025. Those aged 20 to 24 face higher risks of being classified as Neet compared with younger teenagers.
Across the UK, the majority of Neets—60%—are economically inactive, meaning they neither search for work nor can begin employment immediately. Some young people have found success through specialist support addressing underlying barriers such as autism, highlighting the importance of tailored intervention.
Government response and the Milburn review
The Department for Work and Pensions, which oversees job centres, stated:
Every young person deserves the chance to build a future they are proud of. That is why we are investing £2.5bn to help more young people earn or learn, including through a Youth Hub in every local area, bringing together housing, mental health and employment support. And we are transforming Jobcentres to create a more personalised, modern and accessible service to support people across the country into work.
Former Labour health secretary Alan Milburn is conducting a major government review into youth unemployment and Neet numbers. His interim review, published in May 2026, found that youth Neet numbers had been rising since 2019 and identified poor mental health and late-arriving support as contributing factors.
What happens next
Milburn's final review is expected to be published in November 2026 and could propose giving local authorities greater power and funding to help young people into work. Reported proposals include a local-authority-led participation programme and a youth guarantee offering a job, training place or apprenticeship, conditional on engagement with support services.
