Effects of an employment enhancement programme on participant NEETs

The research examined the effects on participants of an employment enhancement programme (EEP), which was delivered by a work-integration social enterprise in an area of high unemployment in the South East of England. The EEP was designed to increase the employability of young people aged 16-24 years of age who are not in employment, education or training (NEET). In order to measure the effects of the EEP on the participants, twenty four NEET young people completed questionnaires designed to measure their General Self Efficacy (GSE) before and after (Time 1 & Time 2) their engagement in the EEP. Fifteen of the original twenty four NEETs also took part in semi-structured interviews with a researcher at Time 1 and Time 2. Results of the analysis of the questionnaire data revealed a statistically significant increase in the levels of GSE for the twenty four participants after engagement in the EEP. Results of the analysis of the interview data with fifteen participants revealed eight overall themes, four at Time 1 and four at Time 2. The triangulation of the quantitative and qualitative results of this research revealed the psychological benefits to this NEET group of young people after engagement in the EEP