§ Mr. Duncan SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what the cost of training a personal adviser is; what length of time it takes to train a personal adviser; and what specific areas of training personal advisers undergo for(a) the New Deal for Lone Parents and (b) the Single Gateway to Benefit. [73990]
§ Angela EaglePersonal advisers working on the New Deal for Lone Parents receive up to six weeks training, at an average cost of £4,337 (including travel and subsistence), half of which is provided by the Employment Service and half by the Benefits Agency. All personal advisers are fully trained in the skills and knowledge required to deal with the client group, and specifically in jobsearch activity; benefits and allowances training; advanced interviewing and presentational, marketing and representational skills.
The Single Gateway pilots will provide the information we need to determine the optimum investment in training for our personal advisers. The programme of learning we are currently developing will, however, ensure that personal advisers have the necessary balance of skills in order to deal with a wide range of clients in differing circumstances.
§ Mr. Duncan SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of advisers in the Single Gateway to Benefit will be trained to deal with all areas of special needs in each interview centre. [73991]
§ Angela EagleOne of the key questions which the single gateway pilots will help us address is how far it is reasonable to expect one individual to be able to deal with712W the special needs of all our customers. In the initial stages of the pilots we will be setting up adviser teams. Each team will have the range of expertise required.
§ Mr. Duncan SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security, pursuant to his oral statement of 23 February 1999,Official Report, column 225, what estimate he has made of the total number of personal advisers required for the Single Gateway to Benefit when it is rolled out nationally in its final stage. [73987]
§ Angela EagleWe will use the single gateway pilots to determine the number of personal advisers that would be required if the Single Work-Focused Gateway were to be rolled out nationally. We will consider national implementation in the light of these findings.
§ Mr. Duncan SmithTo ask the Secretary of State for Social Security what proportion of personal advisers required for the Single Gateway to Benefit is planned to be recruited from outside the employment and benefit agencies. [73988]
§ Angela EagleThe recruitment arrangements for Personal Adviser posts have been developed to fill posts, as far as possible, using existing staff in the Employment Service, the Benefits Agency and the Local Authorities. Staff whose current job is directly affected by the introduction of Single Work-Focused Gateway will have priority.
Staff will be selected for Personal Adviser posts on the basis of their suitability and competence for the work. There is no pre-determined proportion of posts to be filled by staff from the Employment Service, the Benefits Agency or the Local Authorities. If there are insufficient suitable internal candidates to fill posts, external recruitment will be considered.
Four of the pilots will be run by the private/voluntary sectors. They may wish to use their own staff to undertake the service or may contract existing Employment Service, Benefits Agency and Local Authority staff.