The Longer-Term Impact of the New Deal for Young People

The New Deal for Young People (NDYP) was introduced in 12 Pathfinder areas during early 1998 and rolled out nationally from April 1998. The programme is mandatory and provides support for 18 to 24 year olds who have been unemployed and claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) for six months. The NDYP is the largest government labour market programme with nearly 960,000 clients having started the programme by March 2005. There has been extensive evaluation of the immediate impact of the NDYP on individuals and the level of unemployment but relatively little research into its longer-term effect and the longer-term outcomes of participants. This paper seeks to fill this gap by addressing the following questions: • What is the impact of the NDYP? • Which of the NDYP’s options is the best? • Who performs best on the NDYP?