Channelling Motivation: Supporting new pathways for young people  

How can we help young people to be better-prepared for a future of work, one in the midst of rapid technological transformation?

Join us on 26th Feb at midday for a webinar featuring Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE as we launch a major new set of reports tackling this urgent issue.

This week is National Apprenticeship Week, and the government has recommitted itself to ‘unlock opportunities for young people across the country’. Currently though, too many of these opportunities are ‘bouncing off’ young people, who are struggling to make the transition from school to training and work.

Work that we have been doing in partnership with the EY Foundation has found that cultivating intrinsic and internal motivation could make a real difference, especially for young people from low-income backgrounds. Channelling motivation towards a future of work helps develop vital human-centric skills such as communication and problem-solving, but it also improves ‘receptivity’ for other external inputs, such as careers guidance and training – meaning that these will be more effective.

Having gone up and down the country listening to young people talk about their future aspirations, we designed and piloted an intervention focused on motivation, and the early results have been very promising.

Join us at midday on the 26th February for the launch webinar of this research, where we’ll present findings on practical actions for policymakers, educators, employers and delivery organisations seeking to improve access to better work for young people.

From classroom to career: Youth unemployment as a structural challenge | Senior Research Fellow Professor Abigail Marks

Although the UK currently faces increasing numbers of young people not in education, employment or training (NEETs), youth unemployment has been a long-running structural challenge across the UK.

In this blog piece, IFOW Senior Research Fellow Abigail Marks traces how systems mismatches in education, training and employer demand have shaped where we are today, and the collaborative action needed to connect young people with meaningful work.

We’re recruiting – IFOW Board Trustee Treasurer

Want to make a meaningful impact on the future of work? We’re seeking a passionate individual to join our Board of Trustees as Treasurer, to provide strategic insight over IFOW’s vision, and goals, and to help drive our mission forward.

For more details on how to apply, see here.

Made by institutions…not predetermined by technology | Webinar recording

Last Friday, we hosted a webinar on the central importance of investing in institutional structures such as HR policies and worker voice, as it is these things that shape whether new technologies such as AI reduce barriers to mobility, and raise pay – especially for those on the lowest wages.

The webinar marked the launch of further publications from the Nuffield-funded Pissarides Review, and our partnership with Digit, and you can access those here.

You can now find the recording on our website here.

Making the Future Work | Monday 18 May 2026

Registration is open for our major Making the Future Work conference, which will take place at the IET in London on 18th May. We’re excited to begin announcing our first round of speakers, including:

• Liz Kendall, DSIT Secretary of State

• Bart van Ark, Managing Director and Principal Investigator at The Productivity Institute

• Kate Bell, General Secretary TUC

Please do sign-up here. If you are interested in partnering with us for this event, please contact team@ifow.org.

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