Duty to remain in post-16 education and training

All young people are under a duty to continue participating in education or training until at least their 18th birthday. This applies to all young people born on or after 1 September 1997.

Participation can include:

• full-time study in a school, college or with a training provider
• full-time work or volunteering (20 hours or more) combined with part-time education or training leading to relevant, regulated qualifications
• an apprenticeship, traineeship or supported internship

Salford City Council will support all young people to participate. The Education and Skills Act places additional responsibilities on local authorities to promote the participation of all 16 to 18 year-old residents and make arrangements to identify those young people who are at risk of not participating.

These complement the existing duties to secure sufficient and suitable education and training provision for all 16 to 19 year-olds (and those up to the age of 25 who have special educational needs and disabilities) and to encourage, enable and assist them to take part.

Employment and Skills Strategy

In order to support more young people to engage in appropriate and compliant education, employment or training, the council and its partners from across education, training, business and support services came together in 2019 (and again in 2021) to develop a strategy to reduce the number of young people who were NEET (Not in Education, Employment or Training).

This strategy covers the 16 and 17 year-olds as part of the local authority’s statutory responsibility to track and support young people, but also includes the support for 18 to 24 year-olds who are also unemployed, and where there are specific vulnerable groups such as youth offenders, care experienced young people and those with Special Educational Needs and/or Disabilities (SEND).

A link to the strategy and action plan can found at the bottom of this page.

The launch of the strategy in November 2023 also identified how Salford should inspire young people through work-related experiences during their school education, making technical education pathways visible to young people and ensuring that the emotional and mental health of young people remains a priority to support future success.

The strategy also identifies the importance of targeted activity to improve the engagement of young people in education, employment and training, to therefore reduce NEET. There are detailed actions and approaches we will take to reduce NEET in Salford over the next two years.

Whilst the council will be accountable for the delivery of the Employment and Skills Strategy, it is important to recognise that reducing NEET and increasing participation in education and training is not just a civic or social duty, but a fundamental requirement that partners and stakeholders from across the public, private and voluntary sectors should agree to collaboratively deliver to achieve a more inclusive and prosperous local economy.

The strategy has been considered by the council’s Youth Employment Partnership, which includes internal teams such as the Next Step Leaving Care Service, SEN, IYSS and also external partners including Salford City College Group, University of Salford, Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), local training providers, the Salford Skills and Work team and schools.

The Employment and Skills Strategy has been to the Salford Skills and Work Board for consultation and has been signed off by Councillor Hinds. The strategy was launched November 2023.

For further information please contact sarah.scanlan@salford.gov.uk.

This page was last updated on 19 February 2025