HC Deb 30 October 1989 vol 159 cc2-4W
Mr. Alton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment how long a claimant must be out of work before being eligible to join a job club.

Mr. Eggar

Claimants should normally be out of work for six months before being eligible to join a job club. There are relaxations to the six month rule for people with disabilities, ex-offenders and people leaving YTS or employment training without a job to go to.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what facilities are available at his Department's job clubs to assist unemployed people trying to secure work.

Mr. Eggar

Every job club has telephones, paper, pens, typewriter or word processors, envelopes, stamps, photocopiers, newspapers and directories which members can use free of charge. A trained job club leader helps members draw up a curriculum vitae and shows them the best way to look for jobs, make job applications and prepare for interviews. Fares to attend the job club are reimbursed.

Job clubs continue to be very successful and provide valuable help to all those who join. Over 54,000 members have found work so far in 1989. Many others have gone on to training, self-employment or education. Overall, 69 per cent. of all job club members leave with a positive outcome.

Mr. Alton

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment whether he will consider making job club facilities immediately available to unemployed people as soon as they become unemployed.

Mr. Eggar

Job club membership is generally available only to people who have been unemployed six months or longer. This is because long-term unemployed people are generally less well motivated and have greater difficulties in applying for and securing jobs than those recently unemployed.

However, there are some important exceptions to the six-month eligibility rule which are designed to help groups who do need extra help, including those with

Employment Training agreed action plans at training agents
May to September 1989
Area office May 1989 June 1989 July 1989 August 1989 September 1989
South East Region1
Berkshire and Oxfordshire 270 307 340 283 339
Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire 412 472 509 487 538
Essex 538 589 761 460 734
Hampshire and Isle of Wight 583 573 705 463 602
Kent 561 550 470 480 574
Surrey 154 247 186 197 248
Sussex 548 461 546 549 542
London Region
Inner London North 1,595 1,632 1,477 1,545 1,510
Inner London South 420 684 648 618 748
London East 743 721 695 820 787
London North 726 749 584 700 962
London South 406 479 426 346 561
London West 365 428 388 417 431
South West Region
Avon 432 440 342 378 764
Devon and Cornwall 861 1,003 918 877 1,238
Dorset and Somerset 307 344 231 226 296
Gloucester and Wiltshire 442 402 285 333 468
West Midlands Region
Birmingham and Solihull 1,177 1,506 1,424 1,363 1,988
Coventry and Warwickshire 524 559 598 418 701
Dudley and Sandwell 631 684 688 619 755
Staffordshire 594 628 541 494 603
The Marches, Hereford/Worcester 577 555 550 580 716
Wolverhampton and Walsall 463 587 715 466 532
East Midlands and Eastern Region
Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire 317 289 260 249 396
Derbyshire 531 571 444 430 512
Leicestershire and Northamptonshire 598 714 571 733 960

disabilities, ex-offenders and those leaving YTS or ET without a job. I have no plans to change the eligibility rules at present.