‘Dead end kids in dead end jobs’? Reshaping debates on young people in jobs without training

Abstract

Young people who are in ‘jobs without training’ (JWT) are commonly seen as ‘dead end kids in dead end jobs’. They have been identified as a problem group who need to be encouraged back into formal education and training. Following the Leitch report and the new policy goal to involve all young people in education and training up to the age of 18, it is more important than ever to understand the needs of such young people. However, very little is actually known about their lives, their work and their priorities‐particularly from the perspectives of young people themselves. This article draws on findings from a longitudinal participative, qualitative project involving 182 interviews with 114 young people in JWT in the south of England, conducted in collaboration with Connexions. This is the first large‐scale, longitudinal qualitative study to be completed on young people in JWT, and seeks to open up new perspectives on this issue, informed and grounded in empirical research. The purpose of this article is to present some initial findings and open up the debate. It concludes that although these young people face serious structural inequalities, JWT need not be a deficit category and the term does not reflect their complex lives. Such young people do not live lives without learning, both in the workplace and in their worlds outside. Most prefer to learn in these contexts, rather than in school or college. Trying to force them into formal, linear educational pathways is anachronistic and likely to be actively resisted.