Time spent out of work and education in early adulthood can echo far beyond the moment. New research from University College London (UCL) shows that being NEET, not in education, employment or training, between the ages of 16 and 24 is associated with significantly poorer outcomes in midlife, affecting employment, finances, and physical and mental health decades later.

Using detailed, month by month data from the 1970 British Cohort Study, researchers track more than 8,000 people from early adulthood through to age 51. The findings point to a clear dose response effect. The longer people spend disengaged from work and education when they are young, the worse their outcomes are in midlife. Those who are persistently NEET are far more likely to be unemployed or economically inactive in their early fifties, and much more likely to report poor health and high psychological distress than peers who remain connected to work or learning.

Crucially, the research shows that even shorter periods of disengagement can have lasting effects. Spells of two to three years spent NEET are linked to higher risks of unemployment, financial difficulty and poor wellbeing decades later. As Dr Alina Pelikh of the UCL Centre for Longitudinal Studies says, early disengagement “has a long term scarring effect on people’s employment and finances”, with knock on impacts for health that do not simply fade with time.

These findings matter because the scale of youth disengagement today is significant.

Recent national data shows large numbers of young people reaching their mid twenties with little or no work experience. The UCL research suggests this lack of early attachment to the labour market is not a neutral gap that can be easily closed later, but a risk factor that can compound over the life course.

“This reinforces much of what our teams are seeing across many of our programmes,” says Palladium’s Tom Onions. “Youth unemployment is rarely just about finding a vacancy. It is often bound up with confidence, health, housing, language skills, caring responsibilities and access to local opportunities.” Addressing those barriers early, and in the round, can make the difference between a short interruption and long term exclusion.

“Support needs to recognise that work, skills and wellbeing are deeply connected,” adds Onions. “Where young people experience disengagement early on, the priority is to rebuild confidence and capability alongside employability, so they can sustain work, not just enter it.”

He explains that this approach underpins Palladium’s delivery of employability programmes in the UK, which supports people who have been out of work for extended periods to re enter the labour market. While our contracts work with adults of all ages, its model reflects lessons that are especially relevant for younger participants: personalised coaching, employer engagement, and practical help that tackles non work barriers alongside job search. Participants receive tailored support that recognises individual circumstances rather than a one size fits all pathway.

Similarly, Connect to Work, Palladium’s delivery of Local Authority procured employment support, focuses on people who face additional barriers to employment, including health conditions or disabilities. The programme brings together employment advisers, health services and local partners to provide integrated, wraparound support. For young people at risk of long term disengagement, this kind of joined up approach reflects what the UCL evidence suggests is most effective: reducing time spent NEET by addressing the full set of challenges individuals face, not just their CV. We are seeing the importance of that joined up approach on Connect to Work where integration with local partners working with young people has meant that employment journeys happen alongside a wider circle of support. Connect to Work follows an IPS or Individual Placement Support model, which is a person centered and integrated approach positively impacting engagement.

Work experience emerges as a particularly powerful protective factor. UCL researchers highlight that those with little or no exposure to work in early adulthood face the greatest long term risks. “Work experience reduces isolation and builds confidence,” Onions explains. “It gives young people a sense of belonging and momentum that is hard to replicate through training alone.”

The implications for policy and practice are clear. Preventing long term disengagement means intervening early, staying engaged for long enough to make a difference, and designing services around people rather than systems. Programmes that combine skills, health, employer engagement and personalised support are better placed to turn early setbacks into temporary pauses rather than lifelong scars.

As governments, employers and providers grapple with the challenge of youth unemployment, the UCL findings offer a timely reminder. The costs of disengagement are not confined to youth. They accumulate across decades. Investing in effective, inclusive employment support early on is not just a social good. It is a long term economic one.