The report analysed the Longitudinal Study of Young People in England, which interviewed a sample of 16,000 young people annually for five years between 2004 and 2009.

It found that careers education and IAG appeared to influence young people’s opinions before the age of 16.

But when it came to actually making choices about what to do post-16, careers education and IAG had "no observable effects".

The research suggests this could be because careers education and IAG provided to young people in school years eight and nine may only have a short-term impact.

On Connexions services particularly, the research concludes that such provision has modest benefit.

It states: "As contact with young people is minimal and only on referral, advice from Connexions has a negligible impact on both short-term opinions and on eventual choices."

Despite this, the research is positive about the link between advice on training and future participation in work and training.

"Some young people had spoken to either teachers or Connexions about training or apprenticeships," the report said. "They were more likely to take up either training places or full-time work."