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NEWS
Southern
England
Group
Update 1
.
Contents
To open links contained
in this newsletter right click
on the link & “open hyperlink”
Budget Report 2011
Targets for Jobcentre Plus
2011/2012
Welfare Reform Update
Get Britain Working
•
•
•
•
Work Programme
Work Experience
New Enterprise Allowance
Enterprise Clubs
Welcome to our first edition .of NEWS newsletter.
I am delighted to be writing the foreword of the first edition of
our new revised external newsletter which we will be
sending to all our key partners and stakeholders across the
newly formed Southern England Group.
Some of you may be aware that following the recent
restructure of Jobcentre Plus we have merged the South
East & South West regions to become the new Southern
England Group.
More recently, following an internal reorganisation of our
business I am pleased to be taking on the role of Southern
England Group Senior Partnerships Manager leading a
small team that will be responsible for working with key
stakeholders and partners across the new Group.
We are keen to ensure that you are kept up to date with
the welfare reform agenda and other key changes within
Jobcentre Plus, therefore we will be producing a revamped
regular newsletter. This will include key Jobcentre Plus
messages and information we hope you will find useful.
I hope you find the content of this newsletter helpful, feel
free to send us your comments and suggestions.
I look forward to working with many of you in the future .
Lynda Jones
Southern England Group Senior Partnerships Manager
Mandatory Work Activity
Skills Conditionality
Useful websites
Budget Report 2011
The Chancellor’s Budget Report to Parliament included a number
of changes that will affect DWP, Jobcentre Plus and our
customers, in particular the announcement of additional support
to tackle youth unemployment.
The measures announced will build on the existing Get Britain
Working measures and affirm our commitment to reduce
unemployment across the country.
This enhanced package of support will help young people move
into the labour market through opportunities that offer work
experience, skills training, guaranteed interviews and progression
into apprenticeships.
The expanded offer announced in the budget will increase the
number of Work Experience places from 20,000 to 100,000
places over the next two years.
To make this work Jobcentre Plus will:
• engage and encourage employers, Further Education colleges,
the National Apprenticeship Service and Local Enterprise
Partnerships to design and deliver work experience, preemployment training, jobs and apprenticeship opportunities for
young people;
• maximise effective partnership working to make the most of
those opportunities by identifying, referring and placing young
people on them;
• play its part in supporting DWP’s commitment of offering 4,000
Work Experience placements over the next two years by
identifying suitable opportunities across the organisation;
• give Jobcentre Plus District Managers greater flexibility to use
the Flexible Support Fund innovatively to tackle specific needs in
their localities.
What measures were
announced ?
To widen the eligibility for Work
Experience to include
customers aged 22-24.
To extend the upper time limit
for Work Experience from 8
to 12 weeks to provide a
structured route for young
people to progress from then
Work Experience programme
into 40,000 additional
apprenticeships funded and
delivered through BIS over the
next four years.
To expand on our plans to
introduce opportunities that
offer sector specific training
combined with work experience
with an employer in that sector.
To increase the funding to
cover start up costs for Work or
Enterprise Clubs.
Targets for Jobcentre Plus
2011-2012
Jobcentre Plus will now have just two outcome measures for
which it will be accountable to ministers and the Department.
They will be published as part of the Transparency Framework.
These two measures are key in supporting Jobcentre Plus’ role in
delivering the Department for Work and Pensions’ vision to create
a welfare system for the 21st century; to transform the opportunity
for people without jobs to find work and support themselves and
their families; and to ensure that the most vulnerable in society
are protected.
To support the achievement of the two outcome measures there
is also a range of supporting data. The data provides information
to assist both operational delivery and policy assurance and
design. This means we will still be able to measure and
understand processes and activities.
Benefit off-flow rates in to employment
Jobcentre Plus helps move people off benefits and in to
employment more quickly than would otherwise be the case . Our
new labour market measure “off-flow rates to employment” will be
used to understand how well we do this.
There are two elements to the outcome measure:
• Off – flow rates measure the percentage of customers leaving
Jobseekers Allowance , Employment Support Allowance and
Income Support after a number of weeks, and
• Into employment measures the proportion of people leaving
benefit that move to recorded employment.
Monetary value of fraud and error ( MVFE )
This is a measure of the percentage of benefit paid incorrectly
(both over and under paid ) because of fraud or error. It covers
Jobseekers Allowance and Income Support claims only .
Although not included in this measure, we will still need to monitor
potential inaccuracies for Employment and Support Allowance,
Incapacity Benefit, and all other customers, to provide good
customer service and safeguard the reputation of the business.
What are the expected
levels of performance ?
The expected levels of
performance for the two
outcome measures are still
being finalised . The levels will
be published in the near future.
The new performance
management framework
supports the “Jobcentre Plus
offer “ by moving focus away
from business process. It will
drive the delivery of outcomes
by giving greater freedom and
flexibility to our advisers. It will
empower them to take
decisions on the best way to
achieve job outcomes for
individuals based on their
specific needs, rather than on
their characteristics or their
length of claim.
This new approach requires a
cultural change that will put the
customers at the heart of all
that we do by moving us away
from performance
measurement and towards
performance management.
Welfare Reform
Update
On 16 February 2011 the Welfare Reform Bill was introduced to
Parliament. The bill introduces a wide range of reforms to make the
benefits and tax credits system fairer and simpler by :
• Creating the right incentive to get more people into work by
ensuring work always pays
• Protecting the most vulnerable in our society
• Delivering fairness to those claiming benefit and to the tax payer.
What is in the Welfare
Reform Bill ?
Information on what is
included in the Welfare Bill can
be found on the following link:
Welfare Reform Bill
There are three major elements to the government’s plans for
changes to the welfare and welfare to work systems .
Universal Credit :
Plans are now under way to replace a number of the existing out of
work benefits and tax credits with the Universal Credit. The credit
will be structured in such a way that the support for claimants
tapers off at a steady rate once the claimant gets into work,
meaning that they will always be better off working more hours or
earning more money.
Currently the legal changes needed for this are being debated in
the House of Commons and, if all goes well, this should be
approved later this year. We will give you more information as this
progresses, but the Universal Credit is on track to be launched for
new claims in 2013.
Where can I find out more
about Universal Credit ?
The following links gives more
information .
Universal Credit
Incapacity Benefit Reassessment:
The government has the aim of moving more than 1.5 million
claimants off Incapacity Benefit, either on to Employment & Support
Allowance ( ESA ) or, if they are found fit for work, on to
Jobseekers Allowance ( JSA ) .
We have already made a number of changes to the process we will
use to assess existing Incapacity Benefit claimants as a result of an
independent review by Professor Harrington and as a result of the
early trials.
We will also be making changes to the way we assess new
claimants to ESA, and we will let you know more about this new
approach in the near future.
Work Programme
This will replace many of our existing employment programmes,
and will start in June in most parts of the country. This is a very new
approach to this kind of work with the longer term unemployed, as
the providers will be paid on a payment by results basis.
Further information follows under Get Britain Working.
How will the reassessment
affect Customers?
Customer fact sheet –
incapacity benefits
reassessment (56KB) –
updated 25 February 2011

Get Britain Working
Update
What’s different about The
Work Programme?
Get Britain Working includes a number of measures to support
Jobcentre Plus customers and includes the new Work Programme.
•Payment primarily for
sustained employment rather
than process.
The key measures include:
Work Clubs
Work Together
Work Experience
New Enterprise Allowance
Enterprise Clubs
Service Academies
The Work Programme
•Following very good competition DWP have announced
preferred bidders to deliver the Work Programme across the UK.
•Work Programme is the biggest payment by results
employment programme in UK history. We expect 2.4 million
customers to benefit from the personalised support it offers.
•The welfare to work market will be transformed. There will be 18
prime contractors and in total around 750 organisations will be
involved in delivery, including almost 300 specialist voluntary
sector organisations.
•This represents an estimated investment of around £95m in the
voluntary sector.
•All out of work benefit claimants will be eligible at some point in
their claim, including many who have been without support for
many years.
•There will be strong incentives for providers to help all customers
overcome their individual challenges.
We remain on track to go live nationally this summer.
•It will be the biggest payment
by results employment
programme in the UK.
•Will pay providers to support
customers in work for up to 2
years.
•Providers free to innovate
and find what works best .
•Support will be tailored to
individual need rather than
benefit claimed.
•Differential pricing- providers
will be paid more for some
customer groups, reflecting
higher costs of supporting into
sustained employment.
•2 year programme – long
enough for providers to earn
an outcome if they invest in
supporting those with the
most serious & complex
disadvantages.
Get Britain Working
Update
Work Programme continued
Local and Voluntary & Community Sector (VCS) partners
•We recognise the value of the specialist and local knowledge of
many smaller and voluntary organisations and we made clear from
the start that we expect high levels of voluntary and community
sector (VCS) engagement in the Work Programme.
•We are very pleased that 2 VCS organisations have been selected
as preferred bidders.
•Preferred bidders supply chains include impressive VCS sector
involvement with some bidders supply chains consisting of nearly
60% VCS organisations.
•This proves that VCS organisations have a role to play, not only as
sub-contractors but as prime contractors as well and we hope that
this will encourage many more to consider engaging with
government on this level.
•However, we have run a competitive procurement exercise in
order to obtain maximum value for the taxpayer, so naturally there
are people who have missed out on contracts.
•We will ensure smaller and voluntary sector subcontractors are
protected. The Merlin standard will now have contractual force, so
prime providers will have to manage their supply chains fairly.
Procurement
•We received 177 bids from 30 organisations, with between 6 and
13 bids in each of the contract package areas.
•Interest was sufficiently widespread and bids of sufficiently high
quality to allow us to announce at least 2 preferred bidders in each
CPA, ensuring ongoing competition in live running.
•A total of 18 organisations will be involved in delivery.
Which providers have been
selected as preferred
suppliers in the Southern
Group ?
Contract Package Area 9
South East covering:
Hampshire &Isle of Wight
Thames Valley
A4E
Maximus
Contract Package Area 10
South East covering:
Kent
Surrey & Sussex
Avanta
G4S
Contract Package Area 11
South West covering:
Devon & Cornwall
Dorset & Somerset
Prospects
Working Links
Contract Package Area 12
South West covering :
Gloucester
Swindon
West of England
JHP
Rehab
•The procurement competition, will lead to further expected savings
to the taxpayer of approximately £200m in programme costs.
•The Work Programme is also a boost for small and medium size
enterprises, around half of all private sector organisations
involved in the Work Programme supply chains will be SME.
•Overall we expect the private sector to make a total net investment
of approximately £580m in the Work Programme in the first year of
operation.
Link to :Work Programme
prospectus
Get Britain Working
Update
Work Experience
From 26 April 2011 the following changes to the Work
Experience offer will take place:
•
Eligibility will be widened to include JSA customers
aged 22 – 24
( so now covers 18-24 year olds).
•
To extend the upper time limit from 8 weeks to 12
weeks, which will provide a structured route for young
people to progress from Work Experience in to
apprenticeships .
•
•
Payment of travel and accommodation expenses can
now be given in advance .
A sanctions regime will be introduced.
Participation in Work Experience will become
mandatory once a customer has accepted a
placement. Regulations have been amended to
support this change.
New Enterprise Allowance ( NEA)
This offers extra help to unemployed people who want to start
their own business. NEA will be available to Jobseekers
Allowance customers who have been claiming for 26 weeks or
more.
Participants will get access to a volunteer business mentor who
will provide guidance and support as they develop their business
plan and through the early months of trading. Once a customer
can demonstrate they have a viable business proposition with
the potential for growth in the future, they will be able to access
financial support. This will consist of:
•
•
a weekly allowance worth £1,274 over 26 weeks, paid at £65
a week for the first 13 weeks and £33 a week for a further 13
weeks, and
if they need start-up capital, they may also be able to access
a loan up to £1,000 to help with their start-up costs.
The total package of support could be worth up to £2,274 to each
participant who starts their own business.
Enterprise Clubs
These are a Great Britain wide initiative which aims to support the
development of a network of locally led, community based
support targeted at unemployed people interested in self
employment.
What is Work Experience?
This offers young people the
opportunity to gain the work
experience they need to
secure a job before they
become eligible for the Work
Programme. Those
undertaking a Work
Experience placement
continue to receive their
benefit and continue to look
for permanent work.
Link to further information
on Work Experience
New Enterprise Allowance
This is being rolled out on a
staged basis. Devon &
Cornwall will be offering NEA
from 31 May 2011 with the
rest of our districts offering it
from 1 August 2011.
NEA national rollout
timetable
Organisations interested in
applying for funding to help
deliver NEA should access the
following link for further
information on the application
process .
New Enterprise Allowance
Enterprise Clubs
If you are interested in setting
up a local Enterprise Club see
link for further information on
how to get involved.
Enterprise Clubs
Mandatory Work Activity
Through the introduction of Mandatory Work Activity, we are
giving extra support to a small number of Jobseeker’s
Allowance customers who would benefit from experiencing a
short period of activity.
This activity will help them re-engage with the system, refocus
their job search and gain valuable work related disciplines,
such as attending on time and regularly, carrying out specific
tasks and working under supervision.
Jobcentre Plus advisers will have the flexibility to use
Mandatory Work Activity, where they feel this is appropriate, as
part of a wider range of support options. This approach will help
ensure that all customers receive the personalised, responsive
support that they need to find employment.
Who will deliver Mandatory
Work Activity ?
On 12 April 2011, DWP
announced the successful
organisations on our website
Please note in South East the
preferred bidder has changed
and is now A4E.
The preferred bidder in South
West is Rehab Group
When will this be available ?
Jobcentre Plus Advisers will be
able to commence referrals from
3 May 2011.
What does Mandatory Work Activity involve?
•Mandatory Work Activity placements will be for up to 30 hours
a week, lasting for 4 weeks and deliver a contribution to the
local community.
•Customers will be referred to Mandatory Work Activity when
they have demonstrated that they require support to gain work
related disciplines and re-engage with their search for work.
•Mandatory Work Activity placements will be delivered by
contracted providers.
•Providers will deliver around 19,000 placements per year, at
an annual cost of £8million.
•Whilst participating in Mandatory Work Activity, customers will
continue to receive Jobseeker’s Allowance and will be expected
to continue to seek work.
•Customers who fail to start or complete Mandatory Work
Activity without good cause will receive a fixed financial
sanction for a minimum of 3 months.
Who will be eligible ?
This is available for customers
who are have been unemployed
for 13 weeks and claiming JSA.
However, in certain cases
referrals can be made from Day
One.
To Note :
Nationally there will be limited
places available and any
referral will be discussed and
agreed within the local
Jobcentre Plus office.
Skills Conditionality
Useful websites
The Government is committed to ensuring that people prevented
from getting and keeping a job by a lack of skills are supported
and encouraged to address their learning needs.
Right click on link and select
“open hyperlink”
Regulations will make provision for Jobseekers Allowance (JSA)
and Employment Support Allowance (Work-Related Activity
Group) (ESA WRAG) claimants to be referred to skills provision
on a mandatory basis. This means that where a requirement is
placed on a claimant to attend training and they subsequently fail
to attend or complete skills provision without good cause, they
could potentially be subject to a benefit sanction.
Following the Government’s decision to roll out Skills
Conditionality, a consultation document was published on 9
December 2010. The consultation, conducted jointly by the
Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) and the Department
for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), sought views to inform
the implementation of Skills Conditionality.
Skills conditionality involves Jobcentre Plus referring claimants
to a skills training provider, Further Education College or Next
Step adviser with potential benefit sanctions for non-participation.
The training will include vocational skills; basic skills, such as
literacy, numeracy and employability training. The aim of the
policy is to ensure that those claimants on active benefits who
have a skills need preventing them from getting and keeping a
job take the necessary steps to address that need as part of their
journey back to work.
The consultation period ended on 3 February 2011 and
work is being currently undertaken to review the delivery
plans in light of the consultation for national implementation
in August 2011.
Further information in the following link :
Skills Conditionality
The DWP website contains
general information about
the government’s welfare
reform agenda.
Direct Gov website
DWP Adviser
Welfare Reform Bill 2011 DWP
A new link has now been
added to What's new. Direct
Gov contains information
about all Jobcentre Plus
services and future changes.
The DWP monthly electronic
newsletter Touch base e-zine
is available – to access right
click on the link below and
select open hyperlink
Keeping in Touch
Tell us what you think
If you have any comments
regarding this update or
indeed would like to raise any
issues please contact:
South East – Ailsa Rose
[email protected]
South West – Gaynor Clarke
Gaynor.clarke1@jobcentreplu
s.gsi.gov.uk
Please note if you do not
wish to receive this update or
you would like it forwarded to
an alternative address ,
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