§ Mr. RooneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment if a participant in the workskill pilots who is aged 18 to 24 years will be automatically referred to the New Deal. [25561]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithEvery young person who has claimed the Jobseeker's Allowance continuously for six months will be referred to the New Deal. New Deal Advisers will discuss with young people studying under the Workskill pilot regulations how best to accommodate their course of study within the New Deal.
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§ Mr. RooneyTo ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment how many people have joined the workskill pilots broken down by standard region; and how many of these(a) completed the course and (b) left early. [25562]
§ Mr. Andrew SmithAs of 16 January, 1,049 people had started courses of education and training under the Jobseeker's Allowance Workskill pilot regulations.
There are currently pilots in eight areas. Four of the pilots allow people to study full-time, and four provide additional concessions to allow people to study part-time while on JSA. The breakdown of course starts by pilot area is as follows:
Number of course starts Full-time pilot areas Cardiff and Bridgend 248 Glasgow and Dumbarton 45 Lancashire and Cumbria 175 North Black Country 144 Part-time pilot areas Avon, Somerset and Wiltshire 136 Leeds 93 Liverpool South and Wirral 64 South and South East London 144 Information on the number of people completing, or leaving courses early, is not yet available, as many participants are currently in the middle of their course of study. However, the pilots will be fully evaluated.