1,000 vulnerable teenagers ‘at risk due to virus impact’
More than 1,000 North Yorkshire teenagers who are falling through the gaps in the school and social care system are at even greater risk due to the impact of Covid-19, new figures suggest.
Children’s commissioner Anne Longfield warns a “lost generation of teens” could be groomed by gangs and criminals if they cannot be reached.
The commissioner’s analysis identified 1,164 people aged 13 to 17 in North Yorkshire who were slipping through the cracks in education and social care provision in 2017-18.
That’s around 34.7 per 1,000 teenagers in the age group – putting it 11th out of 15 council areas in Yorkshire in terms of the proportion of teens affected.
The figure includes children who were bounced around or went missing from the care system, were excluded from or dropped out of school, or had high levels of unauthorised absence.
It also counts those who were not in education, employment or training (NEET) as of December 2017.
Ms Longfield said: “Many of these children, and I fear many thousands of other vulnerable teenagers, have had very little structure to their lives over the last six months.
“School was often a stretch for them, and I am concerned we are never going to get some of them back into education.”
A government spokeswoman said: “Schools and colleges have remained open throughout the pandemic to vulnerable children and those of critical workers, and we have worked across government and with the sector to make sure young people stay safe at this time.”