Disadvantaged young people twice as likely to be unemployed five years after GCSEs

Disadvantaged young people are twice as likely to be out of work or education than their wealthier peers five years after finishing their GCSE exams, new analysis has revealed.

Analysis of recently published Department for Education (DfE) data, conducted by education charity Teach First, shows that one in three (33 per cent) poorer young people are not in any form of sustained work or education, apprenticeship or employment destination five years after completing their exams.

That compares to just one in seven (14 per cent) of their non-disadvantaged peers.

Data for the same academic year (2019/20) reveals that only one in four (27 per cent) disadvantaged pupils go to university, meaning they are more likely to end up out of sustained work or education altogether than they are to reach higher education.

Non-disadvantaged young people, however, are more than three times as likely to progress to university than they are to end up out of sustained work or education altogether.

The gap of those not in sustained destinations grows significantly in the years following completion of GCSEs.

One year after taking GCSEs, the destinations gap is at eight per cent, with 12 per cent of disadvantaged pupils not in some sort of employment or education, compared to just four per cent of non-disadvantaged pupils.

Three years after taking GCSEs the destinations gap increases slightly to 14 per cent (27 per cent disadvantaged vs 13 per cent non-disadvantaged), while five years after taking GCSEs the destinations gap widens to 19 per cent (32 per cent disadvantaged vs 14 per cent non-disadvantaged).

Teach First’s analysis of additional DfE data also reveals that the destinations gap is largely driven by higher drop-out rates for disadvantaged pupils in education after they finish their GCSEs, with disadvantaged young people twice as likely to drop out of their A-Level course.

The education charity believes that the best way to overcome the destinations gap would be through the introduction of pupil premium funding for 16–19-year-old pupils. The funding would support the education of disadvantaged pupils eligible for free school meals and is currently available for all pupils up to the age of 16.

The introduction of a 16–19-year-old pupil premium would improve both the attainment and retention of disadvantaged young people post GCSEs and help close the destinations gaps, says Teach First.

Raza Ali, Headteacher of The Chalk Hills Academy, part of the Shared Learning Trust in Luton, said: “Schools that serve disadvantaged communities need more funding to fully recover from the pandemic and get through the current cost of living crisis.

“Due to inflation, we can’t afford to increase our teachers’ pay and provide all our GCSE level pupils with laptops for revision. We need to give our young people the best chance of succeeding in the future. If we don’t tackle this issue now, it’ll be our society that suffers in the future.”

Teach First has recently called for a series of recommendations to improve careers education which they believe could make a tangible impact on young people’s employability. This includes businesses offering work experience for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds to provide essential careers skills and inspire them in their future pursuits.

Russell Hobby, CEO of Teach First, said: “The destinations gap is a priority for the future of our young people – and the prosperity of our country.

“It cannot be right that you’re significantly less likely to have the same employment or education opportunities simply because your family has less money.”