Examining the critical relationship between Welfare, NEETs and Social Mobility

This event has already taken place.

Over one million young people are Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET) and a lack of adequate attention has allowed a whole generation of young people to find themselves labelled ‘NEET’. But who finds themselves with this label? Where someone grows up, their gender, socio-economic background and health are all playing a part in these stark stats. 

For 2026, the Social Mobility Symposium brought together policymakers, cross-party voices and experts, to explore the landscape of the UK’s welfare system and its direct impact on NEETs and social mobility. 

You can catch up on all the action from the day including recordings of the panels and keynote speeches on our YouTube channel here or read highlights here.

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If you would like to get in touch about future Symposium’s, please email: symposium@socialmobilitycommission.gov.uk.

Keynote speakers

	Angela Rayner MP –  Former Deputy Prime Minister and Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government
	Helen Whately MP – Shadow Minister for Work and Pensions
	Lord Blunkett, Former Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Education and Home Office

Expert panels

Pathways for NEETs

• Alun Francis – Chair, Social Mobility Commission
• Nick Bent – CEO, upReach
• Charlotte McGrath – CEO, Movement to Work
• Sharon Blyfield – Head of Early Careers, Coca-Cola Europacific Partners GB
• Craig Beaumont – Executive Director, Federation of Small Businesses
• Lauren Domfe – Founder of Bear the Brunt

Place-based approaches

• Rob Wilson – Deputy Chair, Social Mobility Commission
• Baroness Stedman-Scott – Former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Work and Pensions
• Anna Dawe – Principal & CEO, Wigan & Leigh College
• Nishi Mayor – Director of Employer Engagement & Partnerships, Youth Futures Foundation
• Paul O’Neill – Development Director, Steve Morgan Foundation

Welfare policies and how these currently influence NEETs

• Resham Kotecha – Deputy Chair, Social Mobility Commission
• Ryan Wain – Executive Director of Politics, Tony Blair Institute
• Dr Annie Irvine – Qualitative social researcher and Lecturer in Social Policy, University of York
• Robert Halfon – Executive Director, Make UK and Former Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships & HE
• Baz Ramaiah – Director for Policy & Research, Youth Employment UK
• Peter Swallow MP – Chair of the APPG on Social Mobility

Breaking down barriers for economically inactive NEETs

• Rob Wilson – Deputy Chair, Social Mobility Commission
• Baroness Stedman-Scott – Former Parliamentary Under Secretary of State at the Department for Work and Pensions
• Naomi Clayton – CEO, Institute for Employment Studies
• Laura Savage – Partner Services and Social Value Solutions Director, People Plus
• Joanna Hofman – Director of Research and Evaluation, IPSOS
• Jean-Andre Prager – Senior Fellow at Policy Exchange and Director at Flint Global

For any questions, please contact the Social Mobility Commission team on: symposium@socialmobilitycommission.gov.uk