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25 Feb 2009 : Column 794W—continued
| Number of customers with Milton Keynes postcodes (MK1-19, MK 21, MK23, MK40-46) and the examination centres where their examination took place | ||||
| Aylesbury MEC | Luton MEC | Euston MEC | Marylebone MEC | |
| Source: Medical Services | ||||
Vacancies: Lincolnshire
Shona McIsaac: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many job vacancies in (a) North East Lincolnshire and (b) North Lincolnshire have been notified to Jobcentre Plus offices in each of the last 12 months. [257439]
Mr. McNulty: The information is in the table.
| Job vacancies notified to Jobcentre Plus in the last 12 months | ||
| Date | North East Lincolnshire | North Lincolnshire |
| Notes: 1. Data are unrounded. 2. These figures are not fully comparable over time and may not indicate developments in the labour market. Changes to Jobcentre Plus vacancy handling procedures have led to a major discontinuity in the vacancy statistic pre and post May 2006. See http://www.nomisweb.co.Uk/articles/177.aspx#may06 before comparing data over this period. Interpretation of these data need to take account of changes in recent years to Jobcentre Plus procedures for taking and handling vacancies. 3. Comprehensive estimates of all job vacancies (not just those notified to Jobcentre Plus) are available from the monthly ONS Vacancy Survey since April 2001, based on a sample of some 6,000 enterprises. However, the ONS survey is currently designed to provide national estimates only. Source: Jobcentre Plus Labour Market System. | ||
Vocational Training
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent steps the Government have taken to assist those returning to work from long periods of unemployment. [258236]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 23 February 2009]: The Government are doing everything that they can to help those who become unemployed back into work as quickly as possible. We recognise that extra support is needed during the downturn, and a range of new help is being made available to jobseekers.
We are investing an extra £1.3 billion to ensure that through Jobcentre Plus we can continue to provide personal help and advice to everyone who needs it—help in finding a job, filling in job applications and writing a CV plus advice on re-training and acquiring new skills.
We also know the scarring effects of long-term unemployment both on individuals and on communities. It is important that the Government learn from the mistakes of previous recessions by doing everything we can to prevent people who lose their jobs slipping inevitably into long-term unemployment. To address this we are investing a further £0.5 billion to ensure the support available to people who lose their jobs increases the longer a person is unemployed. The package of support for people who are still unemployed after six months includes: employer “Golden Hellos” of up to £2,500 to recruit and train people; support to set up a new business along with funding for the first months of trading; additional training places to help people develop work-related skills; and more opportunities to volunteer where this will help a person move towards work.
And we are pressing ahead with our welfare reforms from this year that will increase support for unemployed people as their claim to benefit continues. We are creating a new contract for jobseekers, promising help with skills and with employability.
Mr. Jim Cunningham: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what recent steps the Government have taken to help those aged over 50 years to re-enter the labour market. [258237]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 23 February 2009]: The Government already provide back-to-work support for those wishing to re-enter the labour market, including those aged 50 and over, through Jobcentre Plus, Local Employer Partnerships, the New Deal and Pathways to Work. We intend to extend this as detailed in the Welfare Reform Bill.
However, in response to the current economic downturn the Government have already committed £0.5 billion additional support to help prevent people out of work from becoming long-term unemployed.
We have doubled the resources available to the Rapid Response Service. The service offers support across the country for those people facing redundancy with immediate help and advice, including skills assessments and retraining, to ensure that people get back to work as soon as possible.
From April, financial incentives of up to £2,500 will be available to employers that recruit and train people who have been unemployed for six months or longer.
In addition we have introduced extra funding for training places to help unemployed people get new skills to maximise their chances of getting jobs from the 500,000 vacancies in the economy, opportunities to volunteer to help people back into work habits and help to start a business with advice on creating a business plan, plus funding for the first months of trading.
A major factor in the employment of older people is employer behaviour. In addition to providing generic good practice guidance to employers, the UK's Age Positive initiative is working in partnership with business leaders to develop sector-based models of flexible retirement to support the increased employment and retention of older workers and the removal of fixed retirement ages.
Vocational Training: Standards
Lynne Jones: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if he will publish performance data for (a) private sector providers and (b) in-house teams providing pathways to work schemes. [257314]
Mr. McNulty: The Department publishes regular quarterly statistics relating to Jobcentre Plus Pathways to Work Performance. The latest report shows that by September 2008 there had been nearly 1.04 million starts to the programme.
The total number of recorded job entries is 143,650. Job entry information is only available up to March 2008.
The Department plans to publish equivalent information for Provider-Led Pathways districts in summer 2009.
John McDonnell: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what information his Department holds on the comparative performance of (a) the private sector Pathways to Work providers and (b) the in-house provider teams. [257751]
Mr. McNulty [holding answer 23 February 2009]: The Department publishes regular quarterly statistics relating to Jobcentre Plus Pathways to Work Performance. The latest report shows that by September 2008 there had been nearly 1.04 million starts to the programme.
The total number of recorded job entries is 143,650. Job entry information is only available up to March 2008.
The Department plans to publish equivalent information for Provider-Led Pathways districts in summer 2009.
Welfare Reform Bill
Mr. Burrowes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what resources will be made available during the first full year of the implementation of the provisions of the Welfare Reform Bill for the requirement of drug users to (a) attend interview to answer questions, (b) undertake substance-related assessment, (c) undertake relevant tests and (d) undertake rehabilitation plans, as set out in schedule 1 to the Bill. [256399]
Mr. McNulty: We aim to pilot and evaluate the new approach to employment support for problem drug users set out in the Welfare Reform Bill in a small number of Jobcentre Plus districts. The detail of those pilots, including any additional resources that will be made available, is still in development at this early stage.
Children, Schools and Families
Advanced Extension Award
Michael Gove: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many pupils were entered for sixth term extension paper examinations in (a) mathematics and (b) any subject in (i) maintained schools and (ii) independent schools in each of the last five years. [257167]
Jim Knight [holding answer 23 February 2009]: The information requested is not held by the Department.
Care Proceedings
Mr. Llwyd: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many applications for care proceedings there have been since 1 November 2008; and what effect this has had on the appointment of guardians. [258569]
Beverley Hughes: The Children and Family Court Advisory Service received 590 care applications (Section 31) in November 2008 and 714 in December 2008.
This increase in demand has had an effect on the allocation of guardians. In November 2008, 73 per cent. of Section 31 applications were allocated to guardians within two days and in December 2008, this figure was 66.9 per cent. Both of these figures met the current target which is that 65 per cent. of cases should be allocated within two days.
To respond to demand CAFCASS has put a duty guardian scheme in place so that urgent work is covered, and a solicitor for the child is always appointed in each case to look after a child’s interests.
Children: Care Homes
Tim Loughton: To ask the Secretary of State for Children, Schools and Families how many and what percentage of children’s homes were assessed as inadequate by Ofsted in each of the last 10 years. [257658]
Beverley Hughes: This is a matter for Ofsted. HM Chief Inspector, Christine Gilbert, has written to the hon. Member and a copy of her reply has been placed in the Library.
Letter from Christine Gilbert, dated 20 February 2009:
Your recent parliamentary question has been passed to me, as Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector, for reply.
Ofsted assumed responsibility for the regulation and inspection of children’s homes on 1 April 2007. This had previously been the responsibility of the Commission for Social Care Inspection (CSCI) and data up to April 2007 are available from CSCI Annual Reports, accessible from their website http://www.csci.org.uk/. Please note that from April 2004 until April 2006, CSCI inspection reports of children’s homes commented on the extent to which they met the National Minimum Standards and did not judge provision as ‘inadequate’. In April 2006, CSCI introduced outcome judgements into its inspection reports, and used a four point grading scale of ‘excellent’, ‘good’, ‘adequate’ or ‘poor’.
For the period 1 April 2007 to 31 March 2008, Ofsted inspected 1,801 children’s homes, of which 139 (8%) were judged inadequate overall. For the period 1 April 2008 to 31 December 2008, Ofsted inspected 1,682 children’s homes, of which 135 (8%) were judged inadequate overall. These figures were taken from data available at 31 March 2008 and 31 December 2008. They only include children's homes which were active at those points and are based on the overall outcome from their most recently completed Ofsted inspection.
A copy of this reply has been sent to Rt Hon Beverley Hughes MP, Minister of State for Children, Young People and Families, and will be placed in the library of both Houses.
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