HC Deb 22 March 1996 vol 274 cc363-4W
Mr. Frank Field

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what is the value of the grant paid to the executive job clubs in(a) Southport and (b) Wirral; how many people use each service; what is the success rate of service users in finding jobs after leaving each club; what is the current budget for the current financial year for each club; and what is the projected budget for the next two financial years for each club; [21784]

(2) how many service users have successfully found jobs after leaving the executive job clubs in Southport and Wirral in each month of their operation. [21778]

Mr. Forth

Responsibility for the subject of the questions 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. Frank Field, dated 22 March 1996: The Secretary of State for Education and Employment has asked me to reply to your questions about payments made to the organisations running the Wirral and Southport Executive Jobclubs, the projected budgets for the next two financial years and the number of people finding jobs after leaving the Jobclubs. I am answering both questions in this reply. The Employment Service (ES) has, for a number of years, awarded commercial contracts, after tendering, to external organisations and companies to run its programmes to assist unemployed people. The programmes and contractual agreements are regularly reviewed and monitored locally by ES staff. Jobclubs have proved very successful since they were introduced over ten years ago, and the Wirral Executive Jobclub opened in October 1994, with both morning and afternoon sessions. Southport Executive Jobclub opened in January 1994 with an afternoon session. During the period April 1995 to February 1996, 277 people in total have used both sessions of the Wirral Executive Jobclub, resulting in 156 positive outcomes of which 122 were job placings. In the same period, 138 people used Southport Executive Jobclub, resulting in 99 positive outcomes, 80 of which were job placings. The ES does not track clients after they have left Jobclubs, so it is not possible to say how many enter employment after leaving. As financial renumeration is a commercial matter between the ES and its programme providers, I am unable to provide details for the Southport and Wirral executive Jobclubs. However, the total Jobclub budget allocation for the Wirral ES District for the 1995–96 financial year is £383,102, and for the Southport ES District £207,633. Projected budgets for ES programmes for the 1996–97 and 1997–98 financial years are not available. I hope this is helpful.