HL Deb 25 February 2003 vol 645 cc19-20WA
Lord Ashley of Stoke

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What is the current budget for the Access to Work programme; and by how much it has increased since 1997; and [HL1607]

Whether they have any plans to increase the Access to Work budget. [HL1608]

The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State, Department for Work and Pensions (Baroness Hollis of Heigham)

Access to Work helps disabled people move into or stay in jobs by removing barriers to work associated with their disability, and encourages employers to recruit and retain disabled people by offering practical support.

The budget for the current year is £44 million. Spending on the programme, together with the number of people helped, has increased in every year since 1997 and will do so again in 2003–04.

Year Numbers helped Net programme costs
1997–98 12,825 £15 million
1998–99 16,094 £21 million
1999–2000 20,729 £27 million
2000–01 25,887 £32 million
2001–02 32,798 £42.5 million

Source:

Departmental reports and Jobcentre Plus management information.

Lord Ashley of Stoke

asked Her Majesty's Government:

What are their estimates of the percentages of (a) large employers; (b) small employers; and (c) all employers who are aware of the Access to Work programme. [HL1609]

What plans they have to promote awareness of the Access to Work programme. [HL1610]

Whether they have set any awareness targets for employers in relation to the Access to Work programme. [HL1611]

Baroness Hollis of Heigham

We do not have a target for increasing employers' awareness of the Access to Work programme. However, a recent government study on barriers to employment for disabled people showed that 26 per cent of all employers were aware of the programme, including 32 per cent of large employers and 18 per cent of small employers.

Information on all disability services is available from jobcentres and on the Jobcentre Plus web site. Jobcentre Plus invests around £300,000 per year marketing and publicising its specialised services and programmes for disabled people, including Access to Work, with promotional material available in a range of media such as leaflets, audiotapes and videos.

Lord Ashley of Stoke

asked Her Majesty's Government:

Whether they are aware of any research showing whether employers are reluctant to retrain workers who become disabled or to take on new workers who are disabled because they believe there will be additional costs for their company. [HL1612]

Baroness Hollis of Heigham

Research evidence suggests that cost is not a major factor in influencing employers' attitudes towards recruitment and retention of disabled people. In a recent survey of employers1, 49 per cent of respondents thought there were no difficulties or were unable to say what the difficulties might be in recruiting a disabled employee; this figure was higher in the case of retaining disabled people (72 per cent). Cost was not mentioned as a difficulty in recruitment. Only 2 per cent cited it as a difficulty in retention.

The experience of employers who have sought to retain disabled employees also suggests that cost does not play a major role. In the same survey, 78 per cent of employers with workers who had become disabled in post reported that they had made changes to retain the employee, including 19 per cent who said they had provided retraining for employees. Of those making adjustments, 20 per cent reported that the adjustment did not lead to any cost. A further 28 per cent stated that they regarded the cost as part of normal costs of the organisation.

Research has also examined the factors influencing whether employers recruit disabled people or not. A survey of small employers2 showed that only a small minority (4 per cent) of employers said they would not consider recruiting a person with a disability. Of these, only 4 per cent said the reason related to the cost of adapting premises or equipment.

The department is currently undertaking further research on employers' attitudes towards the recruitment and retention of disabled employees under the Disability Discrimination Act. We anticipate that findings will be published in autumn 2003.

1Goldstone, C (2002) Barriers to Employment for Disabled People, DWP In-House Report 95.

2 Meager, N. et al. (2001) Impact on Small Businesses of Lowering the DDA Part II Threshold, Disability Rights Commission, London.