Children should learn about careers from age four, Milburn saysThe former minister leading a government-commissioned review of youth inactivity also wants mandatory workplace experience for pupils aged 14 to 16.
The former minister leading a government-commissioned review of youth inactivity also wants mandatory workplace experience for pupils aged 14 to 16.
By BBC News
Children should begin learning about careers from the start of primary school, according to Alan Milburn, who is leading a government-commissioned review into youth inactivity.
The former health secretary told the BBC that pupils as young as four should be introduced to different types of work, with employers visiting schools to give talks and offer taster sessions.
He said the aim should be to broaden children’s horizons and give them an early understanding of the range of jobs and careers available to them.
Milburn also wants work experience to become mandatory for pupils aged 14 to 16.
He said placements should take place in real workplaces and include feedback from employers, rather than relying solely on classroom-based careers activity.
The proposals are expected to form part of the final stage of his independent review of young people and work, commissioned by the Department for Work and Pensions.
The review is examining the rise in the number of 16 to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training, commonly described as Neet.
Latest Office for National Statistics data cited by the BBC estimates that 981,000 people aged 16 to 24 were in that position between April and June 2026.
Milburn’s interim report, published in May, focused particularly on the increase in young people with health conditions or disabilities who are outside work, education or training.
The next stage is intended to examine possible reforms.
Milburn argues that some of the factors linked to later economic inactivity develop well before young people reach school-leaving age, which is why he wants careers education to begin much earlier.
For older pupils, he said work experience should be a formal part of their education.
“Work experience needs to be mandatory. It makes a big difference,” he told the BBC.
Current statutory careers guidance in England applies throughout secondary education, covering pupils from Year 7 to Year 13.
Government guidance updated in June also says schools should work towards giving every pupil two weeks’ worth of work experience during Key Stages 3 and 4.
That model includes employer-led activities for pupils in Years 7 to 9 and workplace placements in Years 10 and 11.
However, work experience itself is not currently a statutory requirement.
Milburn’s proposals would therefore go further by making workplace experience compulsory for 14 to 16-year-olds and by introducing careers learning from the beginning of primary education.
Teaching unions quoted by the BBC have warned that primary schools are already under significant pressure and said practical issues, including access to employers and resources, would need to be considered.
Education policy is devolved across the UK, so the school-based recommendations from Milburn’s review would apply specifically to England.
The final instalment of the review is expected to be published in the autumn.