UK plans to replace £217 monthly disability benefit for under-25s with employment support
A forthcoming report by youth employment chief Alan Milburn will recommend a new, targeted social security system for people under 25 without severe work-limiting disabilities, shifting them from the health element of Universal Credit to education, training and job-placement programmes.
The Labour government is preparing to overhaul the benefits available to young people under 25 who do not have severe disabilities. Youth employment chief Alan Milburn is set to publish a 200-page report next week that will advise Prime Minister Andy Burnham to create a separate social security pathway for this group, replacing the £217 a month health element of Universal Credit with a package of education, training and employment support.
The Resolution Foundation estimates that around 260,000 young people currently receive the health-related Universal Credit payment, but there is no requirement for them to engage with programmes that could move them toward work or study. Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden, who recently visited Denmark to examine its system, said he sees “merit” in Milburn’s proposal for a distinct scheme, though he remains open to discussion about the appropriate age range.
Milburn’s review, which covers the whole United Kingdom, notes that nearly one million 16- to 24-year-olds are classified as NEET (not in education, employment or training). The report highlights mental-health conditions such as depression and anxiety as the most common issues among NEETs, alongside rising numbers with learning disabilities, autism and physical barriers to work.
Drawing on examples from the Netherlands and Denmark—countries where NEET rates are lower and state support is tied to participation in work-related programmes—Milburn is expected to recommend a more locally targeted approach. He suggests that regional mayors receive greater authority to deliver support, and that vulnerable groups such as care leavers, young carers, teenage parents and former custody inmates could receive priority assistance, potentially including a temporary allowance of £50 a week for six months conditional on participation in education or training.
If the recommendations are accepted, the government will need to secure funding from Chancellor John Healey and persuade Labour MPs of the plan’s merits. The proposal also anticipates expanding the Jobs Guarantee Scheme, overseen by McFadden, to include young disabled people next year.