Devon, Plymouth, Torbay, and Exeter Perspective on the UK’s Youth Opportunity Divide

Helen Wylde-Archibald, CEO of Devon Chamber of Commerce, unpacks new IPPR data on youth job opportunities across Devon, Plymouth, Torbay and Exeter, and asks what local businesses can do to close the gap.

First, I admit I am a Guardian reader! 

A recent excellent article by Richard Partington, on 16 September 2026, reported on new analysis from the Institute for Public Policy Research (IPPR).

It was an interesting and highlighted several elements that are relevant to us as a community. The national report found that the IPPR’s new Local Youth Opportunity Index found a significant geographical divide in youth employment opportunities across the UK, according to the analysis.

The index measures the number of suitable online vacancies relative to the local population aged 18-24, using vacancy data and youth population estimates to compare labour market opportunities between places.

What does this mean for Devon?

Well, here are our results:

The local figures show that Devon is not one uniform labour market: the four predominantly rural districts perform strongly, Exeter is slightly below the national benchmark, and Plymouth faces a much more serious shortage of suitable opportunities for young people.

How the Devon figures compare nationally?

The national benchmark reported by The Guardian article is 109 suitable online vacancies per 1,000 people aged 18 to 24. The national range highlighted is from 46 in Rotherham to 288 in the Cotswolds. 

West Devon performs particularly strongly. Its rate of 201 vacancies per 1,000 young people is nearly twice the national average. It is also much closer to the Cotswolds’ leading figure of 288 than to Rotherham’s 46.

Torbay, Mid Devon, North Devon, and East Devon are all above the national average.

Exeter is below the national average. At 98 vacancies per 1,000 young people, it is 10% below the benchmark. 

Plymouth is the area of greatest concern based on this data, and to be fair this is exactly what we have all been saying – however it is always good to have another data point to add to our knowledge!. Its rate of 66 is:

• 39% below the national average
• only 20 vacancies per 1,000
• approximately one suitable vacancy for every 15 young people aged 18 to 24

Exeter and Plymouth account for the majority of the 18–24 population in our table.

The combined picture

If these areas are combined and weighted by their respective 18–24 populations, they produce an indicative rate of approximately 106 suitable vacancies per 1,000 young people.

That is about 5% below the UK average of 109.

In terms of communication and understanding as businesses this means that we don’t have a single message for Devon – indeed we are looking at a much more fragmented picture:

• In rural Devon, the headline issue may be accessing and matching young people to available jobs. In rural districts, the relatively high rate of vacancies does not necessarily mean that every young person can access those opportunities. Transport, housing, awareness of local careers and the distance between communities and workplaces may still create barriers. The priority must be to make opportunities visible and accessible through careers engagement, work experience, mentoring, and practical transport solutions.

• In Plymouth, and to a lesser degree Exeter, the evidence points to a more fundamental shortage of suitable advertised opportunities relative to the number of young people. Again, we probably need to weight the student population into these numbers to get to a true picture. It also justifies all the work focussing on improvement.
  • In Plymouth this includes creating better connections between young people and employers and increasing the supply of more suitable entry-level jobs, apprenticeships, and progression routes.  The challenge as we all acknowledge is structural, when contextualised against our ambitions in defence, marine, manufacturing, construction, health, and technology.
  • Exeter’s figures are harder to read, its unusually large 18–24 population is likely to be relevant to the rate, but this dataset alone does not establish the cause?

If the data is correct then I think Devon may have a “two-speed youth opportunity economy”, with relatively high vacancy availability in several rural districts but substantially weaker opportunity rates in its two largest cities.  In this we are not dissimilar to other areas across Britain.  The new report by The Guardian has revealed a sixfold difference in the availability of suitable jobs for young people across Britain. The research, undertaken by the Institute for Public Policy Research, found a national average of 109 suitable online vacancies for every 1,000 people aged 18 to 24.

Buried slightly deeper in the report the IPPR make a valuable and important argument that youth worklessness cannot be explained solely by individual qualifications or willingness to work. Its analysis indicates that the availability of opportunity varies substantially according to where a young person lives. The organisation is calling for funded youth jobs in places with shortages, apprenticeship reform, and more personalised employment support. All of which as businesses I think we support.

A Call to Action for Devon Businesses

The good news is that this is not a challenge without solutions. Across Devon, Plymouth, Torbay, and Exeter there are already excellent examples of businesses opening their doors to young people through work experience, apprenticeships, mentoring, industry placements, and entry-level employment, significant investment from Local Government and our Academic Institutions.

However, if this analysis tells us anything, it is that opportunity does not distribute itself evenly. As businesses, perhaps we should challenge ourselves to consider three questions:

1. Could we offer one more opportunity for a young person in the next 12 months? Whether that is an apprenticeship, a work experience placement, a T Level industry placement, an internship or a first job, small actions multiplied across thousands of businesses could make a significant difference.

2. Could we engage more actively with education? Young people cannot aspire to careers they cannot see. Speaking at a school, hosting a site visit, participating in careers events, or supporting LSIP activity helps make local opportunities visible.

3. Could we help shape the skills system? Through the Local Skills Improvement Plan (LSIP), Chambers and employer groups have a unique opportunity to influence how education and training provision develops. Employer voice matters, but only if employers participate.

The future prosperity of Devon, Plymouth, Torbay, and Exeter will depend on whether today’s young people can see a future for themselves here. If we want businesses to grow, communities to thrive and our economy to remain resilient, then investing in the next generation is not simply the right thing to do, it is an economic necessity.

Perhaps that is the real challenge from this report: not asking what young people need to do differently but asking what all of us can do to create more visible, accessible, and meaningful opportunities for them.

At Devon Chamber, we would welcome hearing from businesses willing to support young people through apprenticeships, work experience, mentoring, careers engagement or employment opportunities. Every opportunity created today helps build the workforce and economy we will depend on tomorrow. This is a tricky problem we all share and all ideas and debate are very welcome

The question is not whether Devon’s young people have potential. The question is whether we are creating enough opportunities for them to realise that potential here in Devon.

Get in touch today.

• Read the Guardian article, Richard Partington, 16 September 2026. [theguardian.com]
• Read the IPPR release and methodology, 16 September 2026. [ippr.org]

The statistic measures online advertised vacancies, not every job available locally. It also measures vacancies relative to the resident 18–24 population, so areas with smaller youth populations can record high rates even where the absolute number of vacancies is modest. It should therefore be described as an indicator of the relative availability of suitable advertised opportunities, rather than a complete measure of labour-market health.