What is Your NEET? Seminar 2014

Report & Evaluation

• “NEETS are not a problem they are an opportunity”
• "All the people have the same goals no matter where they are from”
• “I am in a better position to advocate for EU programmes to tackle NEET”
• “EVS is a perfect tool to tackle NEET”
• “Excellent idea to organise seminars with youth workers, researchers and other people working with youth in different sectors”

To find more about what did participants learn and how did they experience "What is your NEET?" Seminar, download here report and evaluation summary!

Date & venue

• 21- 25 October 2014, 3 working days
• Helsinki, Finland

Topic

Vulnerable young people in NEET situations (not in education, employment or training), Status Zero, the excluded, alienated, disenfranchised...

Some young people are on the margins of society for different reasons. They are not in education, not in training and don’t have a job either. They have disappeared from the system e.g. school dropouts, unemployed that are thrown from the dole, homeless youngsters, who don’t find their way to services or help, people living in illegal situations, people alienated from society,... (So we are not talking about those who choose to do something else e.g. gap year, voluntary service, world travel).

SALTO Inclusion has started a longer-term strategic approach to reach these disenfranchised young people who are excluded from the system and see how we can reconnect them to society and improve their opportunities in life.

“What is your NEEt” was a stakeholder, reflection seminar which was the 1st step of inventory of approaches, practices and will lead to research into this matter in 2015, (with a publication based on the findings), which will form the basis for further activities.

Aim of the seminar

To discuss NEET issues with professionals from different sectors and how to create better opportunities for this vulnerable group on their pathway to reintegration in society and the labour market.

Main Objectives:

• Gain a better understanding of NEET: terminology, concepts, causes, differences in Europe, research conclusions, challenges
• Learn about interventions: learn from each other, visit local projects, get inspired, share ideas, present your work, holistic approaches
• Resources to work on NEET issues: funding programmes (Erasmus+, European Social Fund,…), methodologies, tools,…

Programme elements

NEET

• Terminology & definitions – reflection on terms and how we should be talking about
• Categorisation - whom do we talk about and whom do we target with our activities
• Issues and reasons behind NEET
• Statistics – how are the number (ab)used, who is all included in statistics under category NEET (also young people who are on EVS project, street artists so those who are by choice out of the system and satisfied with), should we care about the number or people; indicators and measures
• Why this topic now, why is it highlighted in all important EU policy documents (Europe 2020, Youth Strategy)?
• What are the benefits of being in the system
• Holistic approach – who to work together, cross sectorial cooperation

GOOD PRACTICES & FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES

• Sharing good practices & methods to reach out and work with NEET
• Local project visits
• Inventory on what has happen, what has been done already, including also national and non YiA practices
• Where & how to find finances for youth projects with NEET (E+ Programme: Youth in Action…)

NETWORKING

• How different stakeholders can be working together better?
• Future projects

Participants' profile

35 profesionals with experience working on the issue of vulnerable young people in NEET situations (face-to-face workers as well as managers/decision makers).

• Youth workers
• Teachers, school support staff, alternative education staff, vocational programme staff,…
• Social workers, representatives of social services
• Researchers, academics with focus on NEET
• Local authorities/policy makers responsible for social provision
• Employers, apprenticeships programmes, employment agencies, job centres, job clubs, job coaches…

Team

The "What is Your NEET"? Seminar was co-organised by SALTO Inclusion, NA Finland, NA Malta the UK and Estonian National Agencies for the Youth in Action programme.

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