Major UK hospitality businesses, including Whitbread, McDonald's and Nando's, committed on 15 October 2026 to providing 100,000 paid jobs over three years for young people aged 18 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training. The commitment came through a partnership with UKHospitality, according to the Department for Work and Pensions press release. Work experience and training opportunities form part of the plan.

Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden attributed the plan to the industry's role in offering young unemployed people a first step into work. UKHospitality chief executive Allen Simpson said hospitality is the economy's largest employer of young people and described the announcement as recognising the sector's role in addressing the NEETs crisis. The release said the partnership builds on a previously announced 100,000 retail jobs commitment.

The government also said the Education Secretary was expected to announce a Call for Evidence on school exclusion reforms. The release cited figures that pupils persistently absent from school — absent 10% of the time or more — are 3.9 times more likely to become NEET.