GoodWork and the London Assembly’s inquiry into youth unemployment

Our founder and CEO, Felicity Halstead, recently gave evidence to the London Assembly’s Economy, Culture and Skills Committee’s inquiry into youth unemployment in London.

London has the highest rate of youth unemployment in the country, with nearly one in four (24.6%) of Londoners aged 16–24 unemployed between November 2025 and January 2026 (ONS, 2026). Felicity spoke on a panel looking at the intersection between poverty and unemployment, alongside Melissa Milner of Catch22 and Ayesha Baloch of Impetus.

The conversation covered digital poverty, the rising mental health challenges we’re seeing among young people, and the erosion of entry level jobs.

At GoodWork, we support young people from lower socioeconomic backgrounds to start their careers, and know first-hand that they’re disproportionately affected by the youth unemployment crisis. Too often, young people, particularly those who are underemployed – stuck in low paid work that doesn’t reflect their potential – are missing from data on youth unemployment.

We hope our learnings will be used to help create solutions for the young Londoners we work with. You can watch Felicity’s contributions below.