PA MediaMore Scottish teenagers are in work, education or training, figures have shown, but the poorest are five times less likely to participate.
Figures released on Tuesday by Skills Development Scotland show 93.6% of those aged between 16 and 19 on March 31 were in work, education or training, up from 93.3% at the same time in 2025.
The majority (70.8%) were in education, with 20.6% in work and 2.2% in training.
According to the statistics, the number of those not participating – often described as being not in employment, education or training (Neets) – also fell slightly from 3.9% to 3.7%.
Of those, 2% were actively seeking to participate – the same as last year – while 1.7% were deemed to be economically inactive, down from 1.9%.
The issue of Neets has come to the fore in recent years as governments north and south of the border seek to improve the picture for young people.
Teenagers from the most deprived backgrounds were more than five times more likely to be a Neet than their more affluent counterparts – 6.7% compared with 1.2%.
The gap fell from the previous year, when the figures were 7.1% and 1.3% respectively.
East Renfrewshire fared best, with 97.1% participating, while Clackmannanshire saw just 90.9%.
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