Teenagers will be given £30 a week to remain on job-related training courses until they are 18, as part of the biggest educational reform of the past 50 years. But those who drop out of education or training will face £50 on-the-spot fines, Ed Balls, the Children, Schools and Families Secretary will say today, as he presents details of new legislation to raise the education leaving age from 16 to 18.

Mr Balls will use a speech to the Fabian Society to supply details of the law, which will be outlined in the Queen’s Speech tomorrow.

The change, which will be phased in by raising the leaving age to 17 in 2013 and to 18 in 2015, will outlaw the group of those aged 16 to 18 known as Neets (not in education employment or training) who make up about 10 per cent of that age group.

To lay the groundwork for the reforms, Mr Balls will announce £100 million of funding to tackle the Neet problem over the next three years.

“We cannot wait until 2013 to change the aspirations of young people. We need to start now by engendering a culture change in young people, their parents and the education and employment system through creating the balance of rights and responsibilities that underpin a higher compulsory leaving age,” he will say.

Britain has one of the lowest staying-on rates for education among developed countries, ranking 12th in the rankings of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, with three quarters of young people aged 16 to 18 remaining in education or training.

Ministers are keen to raise basic skill levels in Britain to ensure that we can compete effectively in a global knowledge economy. The thrust of today’s speech will be to persuade young people to take responsibility for their own training. Dropouts will be served with ASBO-style “attendance orders” specifying a course that they are expected to attend. Breaching an attendance order will be a criminal offence.

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