§ Paul HolmesTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many people have entered the New Deal for Young People(a) four times, (b) five times, (c) six times, (d) seven times, (e) eight times, (f) nine times and (g) 10 times or more; whether these people are included in the long-term unemployed statistics; and if he will make a statement. [152668]
§ Mr. BrowneThe information is in the table.
New Deal for Young People (NDYP)—Number of people who have entered the programme. four times and more Number of times on the programme Number of people Four 5,680 Five 400 Six 20 Notes:
1. There are no recorded instances of people participating in NDYP more than six times.
2. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10.
Source:
DWP Information and Analysis Directorate
People on the New Deal for Young People (NDYP) Gateway receive Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) and, unless they have joined under the early entry criteria, will be counted in the claimant unemployment statistics as in receipt of JSA for six months or more. People on one of the four NDYP options are undertaking full-time activity designed to address their barriers to work and receive a New Deal allowance rather than JSA. People participating in NDYP follow-through receive JSA and will, in most cases, be counted in the claimant statistics as in receipt of JSA for up to six months.
Unemployment statistics are also collected through the Labour Force Survey (LFS). People on NDYP Gateway and follow-through will be classified as International Labour Organisation (ILO) unemployed if they satisfy the ILO conditions of being available for and actively seeking work. Those on NDYP options may be counted as in employment, ILO unemployed, or economically inactive depending on their labour market activity. The duration of those counted as ILO unemployed reflects a person's own assessment of their period of unemployment.
1341W
§ Paul HolmesTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many participants on the New Deal for Young People full-time education or training option were on courses lasting(a)0–3 months, (b) 3–6 months, (c) 6–12 months and (d) over 12 months, in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [152669]
§ Mr. BrowneInformation on the length of courses undertaken by young people on the New Deal full-time education and training option is not held centrally and could be obtained only at disproportionate cost.
Information on the number of people participating on the New Deal for young people full-time education and training option in the 12 months to September 20031, and the duration of time spent on that option, is in the table.
1Latest available figures.
New deal for young people full time education and training option Duration on the option (months) Number of people 0–3 7,940 3–6 10,590 6–12 5,040 12+ 190 Note:
It is the policy of New Deal for young people (NDYP) that nobody should be placed on an NDYP full time education and training (FTET) course for longer than a year, and an individual's training on this option is not funded for longer than 12 months.
In a small number of cases, people may leave their FTET option early, return to claim jobseekers allowance within 13 weeks, and then complete this option. This can result in some individuals appearing to be on the FTET option for longer than 12 months, even though their time on the option would be a maximum of 12months.
Source:
DWP Information and Analysis Directorate.
§ Paul HolmesTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what progress has been made in co-ordination with HM Inland Revenue to track whether leavers from New Deal programmes remain in employment 12 months after leaving; and if he will make a statement. [153458]
§ Mr. BrowneWe announced the launch of the Work and Pensions Longitudinal Study on the 16 December. The study will link benefit and programme information held by this Department with employment records from the Inland Revenue and will be used to evaluate the Department's policies for helping people into work and keeping them in work.
The Study will improve our understanding of what happens to people who leave our benefits and programmes, including the New Deal, to enter employment, and will enable us to assess how long they remain in employment.
The Study is now under way and first publication of figures is expected at the end of the year.
§ Paul HolmesTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average cost per place on each of the four options in the New Deal for Young People was in the last 12 months; and if he will make a statement. [147818]
1342W
§ Mr. George OsborneTo ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when Jobcentre Plus expects to complete its New Deal for Young People unit cost model. [147930]
§ Mr. BrowneThe information is not available.
At the time of my previous answer to the hon. Member for Chesterfield (Paul Holmes) on 17 July 2003, Official Report, column 551W, it was anticipated that a unit costing system would now be available to produce reliable cost information on the full range of Jobcentre Plus activities, including information about the cost per place of New Deal for Young People. However, delays in developing the Resource Management System, which included a suite of unit costing systems, mean that at this time we are still unable to carry out this level of detailed costing analysis for Jobcentre Plus and other business units within the Department. A less sophisticated model, which records cost at a less detailed level, is close to completion and is planned to be operational from April 2004.
New Deal for Young People has now successfully helped more than 460,000 young people into jobs and continues to represent value for money to the taxpayer.