Luke Hollowell reached a real low point after leaving school with three good A-levels but no clear pathway to find a suitable job.
He spent a year applying for jobs and apprenticeships without any luck and ended up working in a local theatre as an usher.
He told The i Paper: “I came out of sixth-form and I didn’t fancy going to university.
“I then found myself applying for every and all apprenticeships that were coming up. I didn’t get anywhere. I felt really low. I like to be busy. For me, it brought me back to ground zero. I sent off hundreds of applications, most of the time not hearing anything back. You end up thinking, ‘What’s the point?'”
‘It drove me mad’
His experience has become commonplace in the UK as a report by former health secretary, Alan Milburn published this week, highlighted.
The number of people aged 16 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training (Neet) has reached almost one million for the first time in more than 12 years, at a cost to the country of around £125bn. And this Neet figure is estimated to rise to 1.25 million people by 2031.
According to the UK apprenticeship website, there are currently 19 apprenticeships on offer in Blackpool but about 1,300 students finishing their exams in the same area this summer.
In a bid to keep himself busy, Luke took a job in a local theatre as an usher.
“It drove me mad – I had to wear a little gold bow tie!”
Milburn, who is leading the review, warned the UK is “at risk of a lost generation” and “reform is long overdue”.
He argues what is needed is “the architecture, incentives and accountability… that increases opportunities for every young person to be able to learn or earn”.
Milburn pinpointed social media as an issue, stating smartphones had damaged young people’s mental health by creating a “bedroom generation” hooked to social media.
‘Changed my life’
For Luke, opportunity came in the form of a tip-off from his sister about a job going in his hometown of Blackpool for the environmental charity Groundwork.
The 20-year-old said: “I went for it and was lucky enough to get the opportunity.
“Since then, I have been working as a green doctor. I’m basically going home-to-home giving energy saving advice.
“That opportunity has given me so much confidence. It has changed my life.”
He has been in employment for just over a year now and has had the opportunity to gain extra qualifications on the job, with training in Manchester.
But what has proved more important for him is the self-esteem acquired from being in the workplace doing something he is interested in and enjoys.
Doing social media work for his employer got him noticed by the charity nationally and a chance to air his views in one prominent place.
“I was asked to speak in the House of Commons on Groundwork and young people and jobs”, he said. “It was completely game-changing for me. My confidence in myself has increased.”
For the last three months, he has also been volunteering as an ambassador for the not-for-profit organisation Youth Employment UK which gives young people the support and skills to get into work.
Now he is urging other young people to share their experience in it’s Youth Voice Census 2026, which will feed into the Milburn’s review.
“It’s about getting a job at the end that matters and that first job can skyrocket your confidence.”
Laura-Jane Rawlings, CEO of Youth Employment UK, said Milburn’s review should be “a turning point in how we talk about youth unemployment”.
She said: “Young people have not given up on work; too many are being shut out of the first rung of the labour market.
“To stop the number of young people not in education, employment or training rising to 1.25 million, the Government needs to make the Youth Guarantee a proper route into work, not just a set of short-term schemes.
“That means earlier support, high-quality work experience, more youth apprenticeships, better careers education, transport support, and clear local accountability for whether young people actually move into sustained education or work.”
Six in 10 Neet young people have never had a job and around 314,000 18- to 24-year-olds in England are not in work, education or claiming benefits, meaning many are hidden from the systems designed to support them.
At the same time, mid and lower-skilled jobs have fallen by around 1.6 million over the past 20 years while higher-skilled jobs have grown by around 6.3 million.
“Our Youth Voice Census shows young people value work experience, but too few are getting access to it”, she said. “That matters because employers still ask for confidence, workplace skills and experience, but many young people have had fewer chances to build them.”
