APPENDIX 7
Memorandum by Northern Pinetree Trust
Northern Pinetree Trust is a small charity, working
exclusively within the North East Region. The Trust provides free
home based self-employment training and guidance to people with
disabilities or long term illness. This short submission is written
in the context of the Trust's belief that small specialist organisations
have a valuable role to play in Government employment and training
strategy.
Northern Pinetree Trust is a partner in the New Deal
Personal Advisor pilot operating in South Tyneside and Gateshead
under the co-ordination of The Shaw Trust. The Trust is also a
partner in an ESF funded project developing home based ITC businesses
whereby disabled people, carers and single parents tied to the
home can provide on line business support for SMEs.
The submission is based upon the Trust's considerable
experience in helping benefit dependent people to become independent
through self-employment.
Andrew K Hodson
General Manager
The Single Work-focused Gateway
1. Acknowledging the Need for a Inclusive Support
and Guidance Service
1.1 There are a wide range of factors that give rise
to unemployment. Each individual has a combination of needs that
may, under current circumstances, require support and guidance
from several different agencies who do not necessarily work in
consort and who may operate schemes, regulations and procedures
which conflict.
1.2 This multi-agency approach, whilst allowing for
very specialist and detailed consideration of each individual's
case, creates barriers that seriously inhibit some individuals'
ability to move from benefit to employment.
1.3 A Single Work-focused Gateway provides a potential
solution to many of the problems posed by the existing multi-agency
approach.
2. The Single Work-focused Gateway Partnership
2.1 If the Single Gateway approach is to succeed
it needs to be accepted by, and accessible to, all of the many
agencies that provide a range of services to people who are seeking
employment and/or receiving benefit.
2.2 Clear lines of communication for both clients
and support agencies must exist and there must be a strong emphasis
upon individualised support.
2.3 The flexibility and variety represented by the
support systems available from existing Government, Local Authority,
Health Service, private and voluntary sector organisations must
not be stifled by a sausage machine approach to dealing with clients.
Those chosen to run the Single Work-Focused Gateways must adopt
an approach that recognises the need to provide to each according
to individual need.
2.4 The Benefits Agency, often seen by benefits recipients
as intimidating and unresponsive, must be allowed to participate
freely in reinforcing the Governments agenda of being supportive
of those in need whilst being active in persuading all those who
are capable of work to look for a job. Efforts must be made to
provide an environment in which the balance between rigour in
implementing regulations and sensible use of discretion shifts
to allow local benefits staff to use their skill and intelligence
to respond to individual need.
2.5 The Single Work-Focused Gateways must be aware
of all opportunities that exist for people to move into employment.
There are many routes such as tapered work placement and supported
employment that can be expanded and employed in new and imaginative
ways. There must be a recognition that self-employment provides
an ideal route for many who are unable to access workplace premises
or who have difficulty in coping with conventional patterns of
work.
2.6 The role of the voluntary sector in providing
expertise and alternative support programmes needs to be recognised
and appropriately funded.
2.7 Much has recently been published about the links
between poverty, unemployment and health. Effective links between
initiatives such as Health Action Zone activities and the Gateways
is essential in order to avoid duplication of effort and to provide
a seamless service for clients.
3. Linking with other Complementary Schemes.
3.1 A recent call for ESF schemes in the North East
that can complement New Deal is welcomed. The effort required
to create and manage new and innovative schemes is such that co-operation
between providers of complementary schemes is essential if smaller
specialist providers are to play a part in New Deal. Partnerships
between public and private funding initiatives must be encouraged
if wasteful duplication is to be avoided.
3.2 Regional Development Plans should encourage co-operation
through identification of opportunities where regional employment
can be enhanced by a multi-agency approach.
4. Objectives
4.1 The obvious primary objective of the Single Work-Focused
Gateway is in finding employment for all those capable of working.
There must, however be recognition of the potential for providing
all that pass through the Gateway with some enhancement of their
personal circumstances.
4.2 The inclusion of agencies offering sheltered
working and tapered support within the Gateway partnership, together
with co-operation with Local Authority and Health Service support
facilities would allow for an inclusive service that could greatly
improve the medium or long term employment prospects for those
who cannot pass directly through the Gateway into work or work
based training.
5. Timescale
5.1 The two-year pilot precedent set by existing
New Deal schemes is a sensible timescale over which to judge the
effectiveness of the Gateways.
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