HC Deb 29 March 2004 vol 419 cc1250-2W
Mr. Goodman

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what assessment he has made of the effectiveness of Partnership against Poverty Scotland in relation to its aims; and if he will make a statement. [163698]

Mr. Pond

The Partnerships Against Poverty Forum for Scotland was established in 2000 with the following terms of referenceto draw together the DWP Pension Service, local authorities, major voluntary organisations and organisations representing ethnic minority pensioners to evaluate existing work on the take-up of social security benefits; to consider new initiatives and to help inform the development of a co-ordinated approach to benefit take-up; to contribute to the development of new business processes, training, forms and leaflets to encourage take-up; to identify and address barriers to take-up; to consider which organisations are best placed to lead on take-up initiatives and to consider resourcing of initiatives.

The group normally meets four times a year and has taken an active role in the review and development of claim forms and information leaflets for Minimum Income Guarantee, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit and, most recently, Pension Credit. The group has also been influential in the development of short version application forms and simplified customer service and business processes for older people's services; and in the development of new initiatives to promote benefit take-up. The group have also been positively involved in research into the delivery of services to ethnic minority communities and supportive in the development of policies and strategies to address the issues raised.

All parties involved value the opportunity to work in partnership to develop the most effective solutions to the issue of poverty among older people.

Mr. Goodman

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what funding his Department granted to Partnership against Poverty Scotland in each year since 1997; and how many people it employed in each year. [163704]

Mr. Pond

The Partnerships Against Poverty Forum for Scotland was established in 2000 and does not receive any funding from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), neither does the group employ any staff.

Administrative support for the group is provided by DWP which also provides refreshments and a location for meetings.

Mr. Goodman

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the aims are of Partnerships Against Poverty England and Wales; what assessment he has made of its effectiveness against those aims; and if he will make a statement. [163702]

Mr. Pond

The Partnerships Against Poverty Forum for England and Wales was established in 2000 with the following terms of referenceto draw together the DWP Pension Service, local authorities, major voluntary organisations and organisations representing ethnic minority pensioners to evaluate existing work on the take-up of social security benefits; to consider new initiatives and to help inform the development of a co-ordinated approach to benefit take-up; to contribute to the development of new business processes, training, forms and leaflets to encourage take-up; to identify and address barriers to take up; to consider which organisations are best placed to lead on take-up initiatives and to consider resourcing of initiatives.

The group normally meets four times a year and has taken an active role in the review and development of claim forms and information leaflets for Minimum Income Guarantee, Housing Benefit and Council Tax Benefit and, most recently, Pension Credit. The group has also been influential in the development of short version application forms and simplified customer service and business processes for older people's services; and in the development of new initiatives to promote benefit take-up.

The group has also been positively involved in research into the delivery of services to ethnic minority communities and supportive in the development of policies and strategies to address the issues raised.

All parties involved value the opportunity to work in partnership to develop the most effective solutions to the issue of poverty among older people.

Mr. Goodman

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what funding his Department granted to Partnerships Against Poverty England and Wales in each year since 1997; and how many people it employed in each year. [163705]

Mr. Pond

The Partnerships Against Poverty Forum for England and Wales was established in 2000 and does not receive any funding from the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), neither does the group employ any staff.

Administrative support for the group is provided by DWP which also provides refreshments and a location for meetings.