Tackling Worklessness - Working in partnership with Jobcentre Plus
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Tackling Worklessness
Working in partnership
with Jobcentre Plus
The significant changes to Welfare Reform outlined in the June 2010 budget and the
Autumn Spending Review will impact on the services offered by Jobcentre plus and by
local authority teams.
Jobcentre plus is the main national agency working with out-of-work benefit claimants
helping the newly unemployed return to work quickly as well as working with those furthest
away from the labour market.
This guide is designed to offer some headline changes to welfare reform and to highlight
complimentary areas of work between local authorities and Jobcentre Plus. This will assist
local authorities and local partnerships in:
developing a co-ordinated response to tackling Worklessness
helping Jobcentre plus respond effectively to local challenges
identifying and supporting early interventions that may prevent worklessness and
encourage sustainability of employment.
This guide is particularly focused on partnership arrangements in England. In Scotland
and Wales the arrangements and responsibilities may be different. However the broader
points made are relevant throughout Great Britain.
Work Programme
The centrepiece of the Government’s plans to reform Welfare Provision is the introduction
of the single Work Programme. It is designed to replace the majority of current
employment related support programmes giving providers flexibility to design support
based on customer need with output related payments reflecting rewards for keeping
people in work and helping harder to help customers.
The programme will be delivered on a Contract Package Area (CPA) covering a range of
local authority areas and provided through a national framework contract by a relatively
small number of prime contractors (35) with the commercial freedom to deliver their
services as they see fit. There will be more than one provider in each CPA to encourage
ongoing competition by shifting market share to those who perform most strongly to
maximise job outcomes. Eligible customers will be split into a range of ‘payment groups’
reflecting degrees of need and will be referred to prime contractors by Jobcentre plus.
1Local Partnership Engagement
Work programme contractors are expected to engage effectively with local partnerships
and ensure that delivery arrangements recognise and reflect local needs, priorities and
resources.
For local authorities and local partnerships there is a case for a continuing role through:
Community leadership
Galvanising local partners and stakeholders, offering a long term commitment to
tackling the causes of Worklessness and providing continuity beyond shorter term
national programmes, and the necessity to reduce costs on public services of the
number of people on benefits long term or constantly ‘cycling’ on and off benefits.
Providing essential wraparound services
Often designed to support the needs of the more disadvantaged or vulnerable
groups through:
o local authority services
o colleges
o housing associations
o probation
o health
o work with troubled families
o debt advice and support.
Providing preventative services through work with families and young people,
raising skills levels and aspirations
Offering local knowledge and customer insight
In-depth and up to date research and local intelligence of the area and strategic
and operational links across a variety of local authority responsibilities: education,
local transport, planning, social care and housing.
The relationship between local authorities and local business, including the
development of Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) in creating the conditions for
investment and enterprise, and the potential for job creation.
Securing training and recruitment opportunities through procurement and contract
processes and supporting small and micro businesses.
Established relationships with the voluntary and community sector offering
alternative engagement and outreach.
Local scrutiny and accountability in the delivery of public services.
Doncaster Metropolitan Borough Council have produced a prospectus on behalf of
local partners in the Doncaster Together partnership and Enterprising Doncaster, giving a
clear sense of the commitment and the offer from local partners to work alongside the
prime contractors delivering the Work Programme.
2Manchester City Council have also produced a case study for Local Government
Improvement and Development on their approach to ensuring the Work Programme meets
local need.
The Economic Development Learning Network offer a learning example from Leeds City
Council approach and strategy for enterprise in deprived areas and employer
engagement.
The changing role of Jobcentre Plus
The policy intent is for:
More flexibility for Jobcentre Plus and local decision making with opportunities for
District Managers to shape the nature and level of support in their local area.
Greater use of non-contracted provision and discretion to tailor support to the
individual
A focus of delivering outcomes not processes with local accountability.
More local engagement
Receipt of benefits for those able to work is conditional on their willingness to work
and supported by a new sanctions regime
Increased focus of diagnosis at the new claim stage
Under the banner of ‘Get Britain Working’ 1 there are related programmes that will work
alongside the Work Programme. These include:
Work Clubs and Enterprise Clubs – community led organisations to support job
seekers and those setting up in business, sharing experiences, skills and contacts.
Work Together – a volunteer broker service (The Prince’s Trust and volunteer
centres will have a presence in Jobcentres to promote opportunities)
Work Experience – for up to 8 weeks, open initially to 18-21 year olds on JSA.
New Enterprise Allowance – designed to help unemployed people set up their
own business, by providing financial support for the early months of self-
employment, access to a start-up loan and a business mentor to help guide
individuals through the first few months of starting a business.
Additional apprenticeships – including pre-Apprenticeships to fill
literacy/numeracy gaps targeting nine regions in England.
A wide range of partnership working with Jobcentre Plus has already been secured in local
areas and there are excellent examples throughout the country of the inroads into tackling
Worklessness that these have achieved.
1
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/policy/welfare-reform/get-britain-working/
3Jobcentre Plus has provided:
Up to date information on the nature of the local labour market, the profile of
workless claimants and the nature of demand from employers.
Shared information about local performance
Co-located provision with other services in order to improve the journey to
employment, develop a broader understanding of complimentary services and
improve links with other forms of support, for example: children’s services, adult
learning, debt and in-work benefits advice
Supported the integration of employment and skills provision
Joined up and improved the offer to local employers
A range of flexibility pilots to test out wider flexibility
DWP and Local Authority Co-Design
Local Government Improvement and Development are supporting the work of DWP
in working with local authorities, Jobcentre Plus and local partners in five areas to
develop Co-Design pilots, testing new solutions to tackling Worklessness, alongside
the introduction of Work Programme and Community Budgets. The pilot areas are:
Birmingham, Bradford, Lewisham, South Tyneside and Swindon.
The initiative has been inspired by the experience of Total Place and seeks to embody
Total Place principles, especially in relation to taking a customer-centred approach to
achieving better outcomes at less cost. DWP are seeking a deeper understanding of
how partners can best collaborate to help move more people into work, making the
most of the evidence on ‘what works’ and exploring joint solutions fit for the future
environment. Their interest is in showcasing how good partnership work can be used
to develop effective local solutions.
The pilots are seeking to explore the potential of more flexible delivery by Jobcentre
Plus and the majority are intending to improve pathways for harder-to-help customers
and develop more co-ordinated contributions from wraparound services. Other
innovations include joint employer account management, evidence-based collaborative
planning, use of prototyping methods in service design, and investigating costs around
the customer journey.
The work of the pilots is described in more detail in the DWP publication: DWP
Workessness Co-Design – interim report. (Final report anticipated May 2011)
http://www.dwp.gov.uk/publications/policy-publications/worklessness-codesign.shtml
4Other welfare changes affecting partnership work
The welfare changes resulting from the June 2010 budget and the Autumn 2010 spending
review offered significant changes to benefits including:
Employment Support Allowance (ESA). Further re-assessement of clients in
receipt of Incapacity Benefit will be undertaken between October 201 and 2014
which could transfer claimants of ESA to Jobseekers Allowance (JSA).
Lone Parents able to take up paid employment will move to JSA from Income
Support once their youngest child is over seven (2010/11) and five (2011/12)
Housing Benefit Allowance has added restrictions and capping of rates.
Reductions in Housing Benefit will apply for individuals in receipt of JSA for 12
months or more.
Child Benefit will be withdrawn from households with a higher rate taxpayer from
2013 and there are many changes to Child and Working Tax Credits
Universal Credit will be introduced from 2013 offering a single benefit allowance
for individuals who are employed and unemployed.
The potential implications for local authorities are significant and DWP are holding
continued discussions with local authorities about the detail and implications of Universal
Credit for their Housing Benefit operations and the new approach to Council Tax.
Leading by Example
is a free online tool developed by Jobcentre Plus with LG Improvement & Development
and exemplar local authorities, for use by local authorities when setting their strategies as
employers on reducing local unemployment and skills issues.
Leading By Example sets out 10 Themes, each containing indicators of good practice and
illustrative case studies, for local authorities to assess their own performance as a basis for
priority action:
1. Workforce planning
2. Employment and skills vision
3. Working in partnership with Jobcentre Plus
4. HR policies and procedures
5. Customer insight
6. Skills pledge/skills implementation strategy
7. Work placements
8. Outreach strategies
9. Procurement and supply chain management
10. Multiple disadvantage
Although designed for local authorities the toolkit has also been used by partnerships to
encourage and support other employers to consider opportunities to reduce local
unemployment.
5Early Intervention
Local authorities have played significant roles in helping to prevent Worklessness,
particularly through their work with families and young people, helping to raise aspiration
and skills and promote family learning.
The Government have announced its ambition to help troubled families with three strands
to the campaign:
Invest to test and share – testing out approaches in a small number of areas
Learn from success – areas with a track record of successfully supporting families
will receive government support to disseminate best practice
Break down barriers – from April 2011 the first 16 areas (28 local authorities) will
be able to create a Community Budget freeing up money to be spend on innovative
types of family intervention services with an emphasis on improving economic
prosperity.
County and Unitary Councils have a duty to provide Child Poverty Assessments and
Strategies supported by a duty to co-operate by a range of public bodies including District
Councils and Jobcentre Plus.
The Field Review and Early Intervention: The Next Steps, by Graham Allen places great
importance on early years support in influencing life chances and innovative solutions that
break cycles of disadvantage, reducing social and economic costs. Action on employment
and skills remains a building block of the strategy to reduce child poverty.
The Governments’ response to the report on Children’s Centres calls on local authorities
to continue to think creatively in pooling resources and integrating services with positive
references to the Jobcentre Plus pilot on ‘Work Focussed Services in Children’s Centres’.
Further Useful links
Welfare Reform Bill 2011 – DWP website
DWP Policy Publications – DWP website
Jobcentre plus programmes – JCP website
Child Poverty documents – DWP website
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