The data set used to produce the APM is managed by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) and combines data from a range of datasharing partners including local authorities, colleges, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and SAAS, to enable more targeted and effective local support to be delivered.
Participation by Age
In 2025, participation was highest amongst 16-year-olds (99.0%) and lowest amongst 19-year-olds (87.4%). This pattern is consistent with previous years.
- In 2025, the participation rate for 16-year-olds was 99.0% compared to 99.1% in 2024.
- In 2025, the participation rate for 17-year-olds was 95.3% compared to 95.5% in 2024.
- In 2025, the participation rate for 18-year-olds was 91.0% compared to 90.4% in 2024.
- In 2025, the participation rate for 19-year-olds was 87.4% compared to 85.3% in 2024.
Geography
- In 2025, the Shetland Islands had the highest participation rate at 97.5% and Dundee City had the lowest participation rate at 91.3%.
- In 2025, twenty-one local authorities had a participation rate at or above the Scottish average, while the remaining eleven were below.
- In 2025, the proportion of 16–19-year-olds from the 20% most deprived areas of Scotland who were participating was 88.8% compared to 97.2% for those from the 20% least deprived areas.
- The participation gap was 8.4 pp compared to 8.2 pp in 2024.
Equality Characteristics
- Females (93.9%) were more likely to participate than males (92.8%), resulting in a participation gap of 1.1 pp. In 2024 the gap was to 0.9 pp. The difference in participation was primarily driven by a higher rate of female participation in education (75.9% versus 65.3%). Males had a higher employment participation rate than females (24.9% versus 16.2%).
- The participation rate amongst Minority Ethnic groups (96.1%) remained higher than for those from a White ethnic group (93.1%). This difference was driven by a higher rate of participation in education (87.6% versus 68.8%).
- Those identified as disabled were less likely to participate (89.2%) than those not identified as disabled (93.5%). Consistent with previous years, individuals identified as disabled were less likely to be in employment or higher education compared to those not identified as disabled. The difference was most notable in higher education, with a gap of 11.6 pp (8.3% vs. 19.9%), and in employment, with a gap of 7.3 pp (13.8% vs. 21.1%).
Non-Participation
- Most of those unemployed seeking were 19 years old (47.3%), followed by 18-year-olds (30.9%). The majority of those unemployed and not seeking employment were 19 years old (39.3%), again followed by 18-year-olds (34.2%).
Unconfirmed
- The overall percentage of 16-19-year-olds with an unconfirmed status reduced by -0.8 pp. In comparison to 2024, the unconfirmed rate reduced across all age groups, with 19-year-olds seeing the largest reduction of -2.2 points. This reduction can be attributed to improved data quality brought about by the inclusion of HMRC employment data within 2025 APM dataset.
