Research has suggested that today's youth are taking longer to complete the transition to adulthood. Twenty-five years ago young people had a more traditional transition model, whereas today the transition seems somewhat fragmented. Changes in education and the welfare system may be responsible for the altered transition status of current youth (Keep, 2011), a hypothesis that will be further investigated. Therefore, this essay will explore youth transition and analyze how the restructuring of policies and legislation has affected young people's transition into adulthood. Furthermore, it will be assessed whether these changes are responsible for the deterioration of the traditional transition model. We will also examine how ideologies and political perspectives have changed factors such as education, employment, housing and benefits. Once a full explanation has been provided; the fundamental question that needs to be answered is; Are today's teenagers weakened or empowered? “Definitions of 'youth' in Western societies usually refer to the life stage between childhood and adulthood, the transition period between being dependent and becoming independent” (Kehily, 2007). The age of this transition can best be defined by the House of Commons as starting at 16 and ending at 24 (2013). This transition from youth to adulthood has changed significantly in recent years; the traditional norms and values ​​once followed by young people are no longer respected or easily achieved. As a result, today's young people have very different lifestyles and expectations; adolescents take longer to complete the transition to adulthood. Twenty-five years ago the traditional norms we... half of the paper... qualifications. Internships are run on a voluntary basis and travel and childcare costs are covered. These policies along with others were put in place by the Youth Contract drawn up by the House of Commons; in theory it will ensure young people have access to all available resources to help them get a job or a place in education (Mizra-Davies, 2103). Works Cited http://www.skope.ox.ac.uk/sites/default/files /WP108.pdf used this on 27/11/13 http://www.jrf.org.uk/publications/youth- divide-diverging-paths-adulthood viewed 22/11/13"Understanding Youth: Perspectives, Identities & Practices: Perspectives, Identities and Practices (Published in association with The Open University)" (Paperback) by Mary Jane Kehily page 3 sage Publications , London James Mirza-Davies, Economic Policy and Statistics, Youth Contract, The House of Commons 2013