UK launches youth hiring grant for businesses as jobs drive expands

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UK youth hiring grant launch

Highlights

UK government launches Youth Jobs Grant offering £3,000 to employers for each 18–24 year-old hired after six months' unemployment, aiming to support up to 60,000 youths over three years.
Merlin Entertainments commits to creating 300 new youth jobs across 20 UK attractions under the Youth Guarantee, supporting broader scheme adoption.
The grant forms part of a wider push including a temporary VAT reduction and the Great British Summer Savings package to boost visitor economy hiring and youth workforce participation.

Youth grant rollout and employer participation

As reported by GOV.UK, employers can apply from Tuesday for the new Youth Jobs Grant, which pays £3,000 for each eligible young person aged 18 to 24 hired after being out of work for six months. The government says the funding is designed to help up to 60,000 people enter work over the next three years, with payments made in two instalments after the Department for Work and Pensions verifies employment and earnings.

Merlin Entertainments is among the first large employers to back the scheme and says it will create 300 jobs for young people over the next three years under the Youth Guarantee. The roles span hospitality, guest experience, technology and marketing across more than 20 UK attractions, including LEGOLAND Windsor, Chessington World of Adventures, Alton Towers and SEA LIFE Aquarium.

Labour market impact and wider economic aims

The grant is introduced as the government steps up efforts to tackle youth unemployment through more intensive and tailored support in jobcentres across the country. Ahead of the launch, the Prime Minister and Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden host a Downing Street roundtable with hospitality businesses supporting the programme.

The initiative also links to the government’s broader investment push in the UK visitor economy, including the Great British Summer Savings package and a temporary VAT reduction for visitor attractions. Ministers present the combined measures as a way to support hiring, strengthen workforce participation and improve longer-term career prospects for younger workers.

In our earlier coverage of weakening UK business confidence and mixed labour-market signals, we highlighted June survey data showing a broader slowdown in output expectations, especially across services. At the same time, vacancies continued to rise, but pay momentum softened, with advertised salaries edging down and graduate salaries falling sharply year-on-year—pointing to tighter conditions for new entrants to work.

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