A research poll on behalf of an exam board for vocational courses has revealed that a quarter of teenagers say they have never received any careers advice.

1,620 15- to 19-year-olds were surveyed on behalf of the City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development, and the poll found that those on vocational courses were the least likely to have been given guidance. 22% of those studying for A-levels and university courses said they had not received careers advice; the figure rose to 28% for those taking apprenticeships, BTecs and GNVQs.

The survey also found that 45% of teenagers were more likely to ask their parents for advice if they themselves had been to university. However, only 30% of teenagers would turn to their parents first for advice if they were not qualified beyond GCSE-level qualifications.
Nick Grist, head of the City & Guilds Centre for Skills Development, said that the survey demonstrated that deprived teenagers would be further disadvantaged in future. He also expressed concern that government plans to create a new National Careers Service by April next year would mean a lack of face-to-face guidance for those aged under 19, leading to ‘computer-generated’ advice replacing real conversations with career advisers.

‘Young people depend on effective guidance to help them choose career and learning options that suit their interests, talents and aspirations,’ he said. ‘It's not enough to hope that a remote telephone operator or website will be able to give them the personalised support they need, or that hard-pressed head teachers will be able to find space in their budgets for top-quality, face-to-face guidance services.’

A spokesperson for the Department for Education described the lack of adequate, good quality career advice as a ‘sad fact’, and explained that schools have control over their budgets to allow them to ‘buy in’ the face-to-face careers advice that they need.