Employment Schemes (Hansard, 26 February 1996)

§ Mr. Forth

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Service agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Mike Fogden to Mr. Ian McCartney, dated 26 February 1996:

The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question about Jobplan, Restart and Workwise schemes.

These programmes aim to help people who have been unemployed for some time to compete successfully for jobs and opportunities. About 80% of people who become unemployed leave the unemployment register within a year. Those who remain can lose confidence and believe there are few options open to them. These programmes provide a stepping stone towards employment for people at greatest disadvantage in the labour market. It is important that after a long period of unemployment people take time to have a fresh look at their situation and assess their strengths and skills. After 12 months of unemployment people are asked to attend Jobplan, or Workwise if they are aged 18 to 24, unless they take up a place on another Department for Education and Employment (DfEE) programme. Workwise is a new programme which was piloted in 1994/95 and introduced nationally in April 1995/96. The course lasts for four weeks and helps young people to relaunch and refocus their job search.

Restart Courses are for people who have been unemployed for two years or more. Many of the clients who attend will face very severe difficulties in finding work and so there is a strong emphasis on looking at employers' needs and how clients can 'sell' their strengths and abilities. As a result, clients are then better able to apply for job vacancies, or to select another suitable option which will help them progress towards getting back into work.

The number of people who started on Jobplan and Restart Courses during 1994/95 and the expenditure on these programmes, by region, is shown in the tables attached. Information on Workwise is currently being collected but as yet a full year's figures are not available.

Separate details of the numbers going into work were not routinely collected until 1995/96. However, I have instead supplied information on all positive outcomes achieved by Jobplan and Restart Courses during 1994/95. This includes entry into DfEE programmes such as Jobclub and Training for Work as well as job outcomes. Positive outcomes are counted within 13 weeks of participants completing the programme.

Clients remain on the unemployment register and in receipt of benefit during the time they spend on these programmes. Therefore there is no break in their claim as a result of attending and those who do not take up a job or leave the register for another option continue to be unemployed.

I hope this is helpful.

367W

Jobplan performance—operational year April 1994 to March 1995
	Expenditure £	Starters	Positive outcomes
Northern	1,610,970	15,821	3,414 (23 per cent.)
Y&H	2,230,355	21,442	5,774 (29 per cent.)
EM&E	2,445,836	21,845	3,036 (15 per cent.)
London and South East	10,164,408	79,919	21,605 (29 per cent.)
South West	2,194,802	18,864	4,108 (24 per cent.)
Wales	1,273,122	11,375	2,635 (25 per cent.)
West Midlands	2,456,016	22,820	6,765 (33 per cent.)
North West	3,450,905	31,590	6,083 (21 per cent.)
Scotland	2,563,496	24,712	6,943 (31 per cent.)
Total	28,389,91	248,388	60,363 (26 per cent.)

1. Expenditure includes VAT, fees, fares, marketing and publicity, leader training.

2. Total positive outcomes are starts into—

(i) Jobcentre jobs, non-jobcentre jobs and self-employment

(ii) ES TEC/LEC programmes: jobclub, community action, JIG, JRW, worktrials, JSS, career development loan, PDF

(iii) Further eduction, Prince's Trust, voluntary work or where activity is being undertaken.

3. Outcomes are gained within 13 weeks of the end of the course.

4. Outcomes into jobs were not routinely collected as a separate figure in 1994–95.

Restart course performance—operational year April 1994 to March 1995
	Expenditure £	Starters	Positive outcomes
Northern	625,031	8,335	1,028 (14 per cent.)
Y&H	1,056,168	13,728	2,526 (22 per cent.)
EM&E	1,206,653	13,339	1,506 (13 per cent.)
London and South East	4,912,566	47,191	9,564 (23 per cent.)
South West	1,035,007	10,959	1,940 (21 per cent.)
Wales	720,008	6,945	1,281 (22 per cent.)
West Midlands	1,293,884	14,358	3,265 (27 per cent.)

368W

Restart course performance—operational year April 1994 to March 1995
	Expenditure £	Starters	Positive outcomes
North West	1,664,055	19,673	2,963 (18 per cent.)
Scotland	1,061,082	12,592	2,456 (23 per cent.)
Total	13,574,454	147,120	226,529 (21 per cent.)