Every young person deserves a fair chance to succeed. When given the right support and opportunities, they will grasp them. But for too long young people have not had access to the opportunities and support they deserve. Nearly a million young people are not in education, employment or training, locking them out of meaningful work, denying employers the workforce of the future and holding back economic growth.
At autumn Budget 2025, we announced an £820 million funding package to overhaul support and give a generation of young people a bright future through the youth guarantee. This investment will break down barriers to opportunity and ensure every young person can access the support they need to earn or learn.
Today I am pleased to announce the launch of the jobs guarantee grant application window for phase one, a central element of the expanded youth guarantee.
The jobs guarantee will provide every eligible 18 to 21-year-old who has been claiming universal credit and looking for work for 18 months a guaranteed, fully subsidised six-month paid job. This will include wraparound employability and in-work support to help participants succeed in their roles. The aim is to support young people in taking that crucial first step into sustained employment. Once fully rolled out, the programme is expected to support around 55,000 young people over the next three years, contributing to the Government long-term ambition to increase employment and reduce long-term youth unemployment.
We know that young people need support quickly and that is why we will begin the delivery of phase one from spring 2026 with over 1,000 job starts across six areas with some of the highest need: Birmingham & Solihull, East Midlands, Greater Manchester, Hertfordshire & Essex, Central & East Scotland, South-west & South-east Wales. This will be followed by a national roll-out of the jobs guarantee across Great Britain, later in 2026.
The application process for this stage of the jobs guarantee grant will be open from today until 28 February. Details can be found here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/jobs-guarantee The Department for Work and Pensions will award grants to selected delivery organisations in the six defined geographic areas. Successful applicants will administer the grant on behalf of DWP, bringing their experience of the local labour market to source suitable jobs and match young people to roles. They will also use their expertise to provide ongoing support to young people while they are on the scheme.
I would also like to thank the more than 60 employers who have already committed to providing jobs for participants of the scheme, including E.ON, JD Sports, Tesco and TUI. Once delivery partners are in place, they will work with employers to help secure these employment opportunities, with support from DWP for those large employers with a national footprint.
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