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16 November, 2021 Open access

Work and Pensions Secretary welcomes ‘milestone’ of 100,000 young people starting jobs through the Kickstart Scheme

However, recent written answer in Parliament shows that more than half of Kickstart jobs advertised and made available for young people have yet to be filled

The Work and Pensions Secretary Dr Thérèse Coffey has welcomed the ‘milestone’ of 100,000 young people starting jobs through the Kickstart Scheme.

Launched as part of the government’s Plan for Jobs, the £1.9 billion Kickstart Scheme aims to provide up to 250,000 six-month jobs for young people aged 16 to 24 that claim universal credit and are at risk of long-term unemployment. Having opened for applications from employers to offer positions through the scheme on 2 September 2020, it is due to close to new applications on 17 December 2021, with young people able to start roles up until 31 March 2022.

Announcing progress towards meeting the 250,000 placements target, Dr Coffey said today -

‘Having hit the 100,000 milestone, we are now on the last lap and I encourage employers and young people to take advantage of this opportunity as we head towards the finish line of the great Kickstart Scheme.’

NB - in a written answer in parliament yesterday - on how many Kickstart Scheme placements have been approved, advertised and started by young people - Employment Minister Mims Davies confirmed, in addition to the 100,000 job starts figure, that 306,000 jobs have been approved for funding and that more than 217,000 jobs have been advertised and made available for young people as of 9 November 2021.

For more information, see Over 100,000 young careers boosted by Kickstart Scheme from gov.uk

Update (17 November 2021) - a further written answer in parliament yesterday from Employment Minister Mims Davies advised that there have been more than 2.2 million referrals of young people to Kickstart jobs by work coaches up to 9 November 2021, including referral of individuals to multiple jobs and of multiple individuals to the same job.