A film made by young people in Swansea about young people is set to bust preconceptions about NEETs across the city and beyond.
NEET is a government term used to describe young people aged between 16 and 18 who are not in education, employment or training.
“I have no confidence”, “I feel worthless” and “I feel like there’s nothing out there for me” are just some of the feelings experienced by young people in the city who are not working or in education of any kind.
Now, the short film called I’m a NEET is going before national organisations and boards which shape the direction of children’s services in Wales to help address the issues.
Six Swansea young people teamed up to write and produce I’m a NEET with the help of Swansea Council Education Department and the Keeping in Touch team. The project was funded by the Arts Council for Wales Reach the Heights programme.
They drew on their own experiences of trying to rub off the NEET label and to battle some common assumptions about NEETs. The film describes how they became disengaged, how agencies like Swansea Council, Careers Wales West and Mentro Allan helped them back into employment or training and what opportunities they want to see for young people.
When 17 year-old Ash’s first application to the RAF was unsuccessful he enrolled on a college course but it soon became apparent that it wasn’t what he was looking for and he left. Then Youth Support Worker Andrew Burns from the KIT project contacted Ash and with Careers Wales West helped him enrol on a Skills Build IT course.
Ash said that although he still wanted to do A-Levels and re-apply for the RAF the course would help him get back on track.
He said: “If Andrew had not got in touch I’d still be bored in the house doing nothing.
“When I realised the college course wasn’t right for me I was scared, nervous and basically didn’t know what to do.
“When I’m a NEET I feel bored and useless. I feel as if I’m not achieving what I’m supposed to be achieving.”
The film has been developed at the request of Councillors on Swansea Council’s Children and Young People Overview Board who wanted to find out more about how local services support young people in making the transition from statutory schooling into education, employment or training.
Mark Gosney, Swansea Council’s Out of School Hours Learning Coordinator,said: “As well as telling their real stories through case studies the film allows the audience to hear young people’s voices and attitudes about the services that are currently provided and how they would like to see those services improved or developed.
“They have a real story to tell about how they felt, what they thought, what worked for them and what they would like to see for other young people in their circumstances. ”
I’m a NEET is also being shown to other youth groups and young people in schools.
Some NEET facts
- 12.8% of 16 to 18-year-olds in Wales are classified as NEET
- In 2006 there were 307 or 10.7% of 16-year-olds classified as NEET in Swansea. In 2009 that figure had dropped to 178 or 6.7%
- In 2009 Swansea was the most improved local authority in Wales in reducing the number of NEETs at age 16
- The percentage of NEETs at 16 is a good indicator of unemployment at the age of 21
- 60% of NEET young women have had children by the age of 21 compared with only 10% of the population in Education, Employment or Training
- NEETs are 20 times more likely to commit crime than their contemporaries.
