Policies supporting NEETs: Key learnings

• Gunnar Anderzon (Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions, Sweden) presented the Swedish Association of Local Authorities and Regions’ long-term commitment to reducing early school leaving through a multi-level governance approach. Drawing on over a decade of strategic initiatives involving 130 municipalities, he highlighted the shift from reactive interventions to a proactive, whole-school approach that combines universal, targeted, and individualized support.
• Dr. Pamela Marie Spiteri (Ministry for Education, Sport, Youth, Research and Innovation, Malta, atWork4NEETs project, Malta) presented Malta’s national strategy to reduce early leaving from education and training (ELET) and support NEETs. She emphasized a paradigm shift toward prevention and early intervention, anchored in a whole-school approach and supported by the Family-Community-School Link (FCSL) programme.
• Chantal Fijalkowski (IAWM, Belgium) presented the German-speaking Community of Belgium’s multi-phase BIDA initiative aimed at reducing early school leaving through personalized vocational integration. Chantal emphasized also the importance of early orientation, inclusive support structures, and strong collaboration with companies.
• Anders Bergström (Norden Association Sweden) presented regional policy efforts under the EU Strategy for the Baltic Sea Region aimed at supporting young people in NEET situations. He highlighted the importance of improving transitions from school to work through coordinated actions across education, science, and social affairs. Anders emphasized also the role of Youth Guidance Centres as a model for reintegration.
• Natalija Žalec (Slovenian Institute for Adult Education, atWork4NEETs project, Slovenia) presented Slovenia’s approach to supporting low-educated NEETs and youth at risk of dropping out through the PLYA project. She emphasized the importance of personalized profiling and project-based learning to uncover individual strengths and address complex challenges such as socio-emotional issues, health, and economic vulnerability.
• Diana Mudrinić (Trokut Šibenik incubator for new technologies, Croatia) presented Trokut Šibenik’s NEET Academy, which is dedicated to empowering young individuals who are not currently engaged in education, employment, or training by offering specialized programs that enhance their skills and employability in the IT sector.

The challenges encountered by young people at risk of becoming Early School Leavers or NEETs are diverse and often multiple (socio-emotional challenges, physical and mental health issues, economic vulnerabilities, immigrant backgrounds, etc.). It requires a personalised approach to address their needs efficiently and offer suitable and realistic pathways to education or work. This is true both at the educational level and for access to the labour market.

The model of the Youth Guidance Centres was highlighted. Youth Guidance Centres are a place where different support services, usually provided by different public agencies and NGOs (employment service, social services, etc.) are connected under one roof, a place to feel safe and where the staff is working as one team across sectors. But Youth Guidance Centres are also a place to feel welcome for young adults, and this is also reflected in the design and set-up of the premises. Young people at risk are more likely to enter such Guidance Centres than to interact with public services in their usual buildings.

The implementation of such approaches often requires the involvement of teams with multiple competencies (trainers, integration teachers, psychologists, socio-pedagogical staff, etc.). However, as such processes are time-consuming and expensive, it is important to focus primarily on prevention.

Considering the complexity and costs (financial and social) of intervention measures addressing early school leavers and NEETs (or persons at risk of becoming so), it is highly recommended to focus above all on early prevention. One of the most effective places to do so would be at the schools. The key principle is to move from interventions targeting individuals towards a whole school approach focusing on systemic preventive actions, including improved orientation models.

In 2022, the Ministries of Education of the European Union adopted a Council Recommendation on Pathways to School Success, supported by a handbook. The Recommendation aims to promote better educational outcomes for all learners, by lifting the performance of basic skills, reducing early leaving from education and training, and promoting well-being at school. 

Early Warning Systems monitoring the typical risk factors for early school leavers and NEETs are a necessity to be able to act early with suitable corrective measures.

Addressing the challenge of reducing the number of NEETs and early school leavers requires a holistic and systemic approach, given the complexity and multi-dimensional nature of the issue. This challenge involves diverse stakeholders from various sectors, including education, employment, healthcare, and social services, each bringing unique perspectives and expertise. To achieve sustainable and impactful outcomes, a comprehensive approach must be co-created and shared among all relevant actors, including young people directly affected, their families, and other community members.

To effectively engage young people in NEET situations, it is crucial to build trust and establish services in close proximity to them. Non-registered NEETs are difficult to find, and they seldom understand the problem. It is important to use so-called “marketers” to find and build trust with them. These can be social workers, sports trainers, or former NEETs.

The lessons shared above show that tackling the issue of early school leaving and reducing the number of NEETs requires complex approaches that usually go beyond the single competencies of any institution. Especially the traditional models of schools and employment services find themselves heavily challenged.

When it comes to addressing the NEETs, it is common practice that this is done on a project-based approach, often funded through the European Social Fund. Such projects can prove quite efficient, but they fall short when it comes to solving systemic issues. This requires structural changes in the responsibilities of schools or employment services, for example. Those are difficult to implement in the absence of a stable national funding enabling work on the long-term rather than on a project basis.