Lessons from history

CFE, commissioned by CfBT Education Trust, has undertaken a review of historic youth unemployment and training programmes to identify lessons for increasing participation in recognised education and training by 16 and 17 year olds today.

The research, Lessons from history: Increasing the number of 16 and 17 year olds in education and training, was carried out on the basis of:

  • The commitment to increase participation in recognised education and training in England by 16 and 17 year olds
  • The Labour Government commitment to raising the participation age to 17 in 2013, and 18 in 2015
  • The impact of the recession on the 16 to 17 age group which now has the highest unemployment rate (International Labour Organisation measure) than any other

The report is based on a review of 18 youth unemployment and training programmes implemented between 1972 and 1997. While the education and labour market has changed significantly over the past 40 years, it was still possible to identify lessons for policymakers concerned with maximising education and training and minimising unemployment amongst the 16 and 17 year old age group today. Lessons for future programmes include the importance of:

  • Individual support
  • Financial support
  • Programme flexibility
  • Transitional programme design
  • Engaging employers

The full publication Lessons from history: Increasing the number of 16 and 17 year olds in education and training can be found here.

Case studies of the 18 programmes reviewed can be found on the CfBT Education Trust website here.

The presentation from the launch of the research can be found here.



September 2009