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21 July 2009 : Column 1303W—continued
Jobcentre Plus: Telephone Services
Mr. Sanders: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions if she will instruct Jobcentre Plus to permit its telephones to be used for calls made for the purpose of applying for a crisis loan. [282617]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is the responsibility of the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking if she will instruct Jobcentre Plus to permit its telephones to be used for calls made for the purpose of applying for a crisis loan. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Our position on this issue was set out for the Work and Pensions Select Committee in Neil Couling's letter to Terry Rooney dated 9 July 2008. A copy of that letter is attached.
I hope this is helpful.
Early in the New Year, I wrote to you outlining a pilot we were running to allow vulnerable customers to make applications for Social Fund Crisis Loans (SFCLs) using Customer Access Points (CAPs or 'warm phones') in Jobcentres. This follows the Committee's recommendation in its 2006-07 report. We worked with the Public and Commercial Services (PCS) Union to agree these arrangements. The small pilot ran from 7 January to 28 March this year and we have now completed the evaluation, which I have attached.
Our current procedures mean that customers cannot use warm phones to make SFCL applications. This is because a customer could receive an adverse decision in an unscreened area and so, if aggrieved, could pose a risk to themselves, staff or other customers. This control measure is a key part of our agreement with the PCS on working in unscreened offices. The result is that, at present, some vulnerable customers-who use a face-to-face procedure instead of our normal channel of making a telephone claim from home-are referred to a screened office to receive their decision (be that favourable or adverse).
The main replacement control measures for the pilot, agreed with the PCS, meant that Floor Managers and Customer Care Officers were always aware of calls of this type, and-crucially-that the Decision Maker in the Benefit Delivery Centre would contact the Jobcentre on a dedicated telephone line if the application was about to be refused. This allows the Floor Manager and Customer Care Officers to be in place to offer any further assistance to the customer on receipt of an adverse decision. Given the potential risks, and PCS concerns to such an approach, we agreed to a small pilot which ran in five offices in Northumbria.
During the three month pilot seven customers used the service, compared to two using the existing face-to-face service in the preceding 14 months in the whole Northumbria District. Four were awarded a Crisis Loan and there were no incidents of unacceptable customer behaviour linked to any of these customers.
The qualitative evaluation revealed that Jobcentre staff locally were confident that this service was restricted to appropriately vulnerable customers; that they enjoyed the discretion and flexibility this service provided; and, that it was an improvement in access for those customers who are currently turned away or sent to a screened office for a face-to-face decision.
Whilst this pilot has been encouraging, we do not feel that it provides sufficiently strong evidence to roll out nationally-volumes were low and, as the evaluation report reveals, the effectiveness of the alternative control measures was not properly tested. To ensure that this is a safe and effective approach we intend to pilot the scheme again in London, with the option to roll out nationally if it is successful.
We will consult the Public and Commercial Services Union on this basis. We also need to develop the approach along side
Accessing Jobcentre Customer Services (AJCS), which seeks to enhance services for vulnerable customers, and any changes to the Social Fund. Given these factors, and the full change agenda facing Jobcentre Plus-including the rollout of the Employment and Support Allowance-we are looking to run this large scale pilot as early as is practicable 2009.
I hope this is helpful and that you are encouraged, as we are, by these early findings. I will update you as the pilot progresses and am happy to answer any question that you or the Committee have in the meantime.
Jobcentre Plus: Training
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many Jobcentre Plus (a) personal advisers and (b) other staff have (i) retrained and (ii) received supplementary training to manage new claims for benefits in the last 12 months. [275549]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked the Acting Chief Executive to provide the right hon. Member with the information requested
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many Jobcentre Plus (a) personal advisers and (b) other staff have (i) retrained and (ii) received supplementary training to manage new claims for benefits in the last 12 months. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Although I am in a position to provide you with the overall amount of training provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to manage new claims for benefits in the last twelve months, current management information systems in place across the Department do not allow me to provide the level of breakdown requested.
I have therefore broken down the information requested to cover learning relating to action for New Jobseekers Interviews, and the three key benefits, Income Support, Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) and Employment and Support Allowance (ESA).
Over the last twelve months 2,040 Jobcentre Plus members of staff are recorded as having completed learning relating to action for New Jobseekers Interviews. A supplementary refresher event for New Jobseeker Interviews has also been developed and available in Jobcentre Plus since April 2009.
In addition the following numbers of staff have received training over the last twelve months to manage new claims:
113 have received Income Support / Incapacity Benefit training;
2,067 have received JSA Training; and
16,456 have received ESA training.
Simon Hughes: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training is provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to assist graduate and highly-skilled jobseekers; and if she will make a statement. [288710]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what training is provided to Jobcentre Plus staff to assist graduate and highly skilled jobseekers. This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
All Jobcentre Plus Personal Advisers receive a full programme of training to support all customers in identifying job goals. This training is designed to deal with all of our individual customers
holistically rather than segmented according to background, so learning products do not include specific training aimed at assisting graduate or highly skilled jobseekers to find work. In helping customers to achieve their job goals, Personal Advisors do take into account the customer's circumstances, such as skills and qualifications to direct them to the appropriate resources and support.
As you will be aware, the Government has introduced new help for professional and executive jobseekers and has a cross Government package of support for graduates. Jobcentre Plus advisers have been trained on these offerings and also how best to signpost customers to other sources of help tailored to their needs.
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what training (a) personal advisers, (b) decision-makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete on benefit rules and compliance before starting their positions; whether such people are required to take refresher training in benefit rules and compliance; and what criteria are used to assess their competency. [288756]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions asking; how many hours of training would-be (a) personal advisers, (b) decision-makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete before starting their positions.
what training (a) personal advisers, (b) decision-makers, (c) disability benefit advisers and (d) specialist lone parents advisers who are (i) new and (ii) existing Jobcentre Plus employees are required to complete on benefit rules and compliance before starting their positions; whether such people are required to take refresher training in benefit rules and compliance; and what criteria are used to assess their competency.
This is something that falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
New personal advisers, decision makers, disability benefit advisers and specialist lone parents advisers all undertake 60 hours of induction/foundation learning. In addition to this, personal advisers receive 130 hours of training, disability benefit advisers receive 59 hours of training and specialist lone parent advisers receive 47.5 hours of training before starting their positions. Decision makers receive 65 hours of foundation learning and generic decision making training before starting their position. Dependent upon the business area, decision makers may also be required to complete supplementary training in that particular field of expertise.
With regard to benefit rules and compliance, new Jobcentre Plus personal advisers, disability benefit advisers and specialist lone parent advisers are required to complete two hours of benefit rules and compliance training.
The required training for benefit rules and compliance for decision makers is dependent upon the business areas and decision making responsibilities that they are to undertake. For example, for Jobseeker's Allowance there are 145 hours of benefit rules and compliance learning available from which a decision maker would complete the individual products appropriate to their allocated decision making duties.
The amount of training, including benefit rules and compliance, required for existing Jobcentre Plus employees is dependant upon their existing skills and knowledge. In consultation with line managers, employees would assess their existing skills and knowledge and identify the appropriate training products they would require to take up a change of job role. These training products would be from the same product set as that for new staff.
The need for refresher training on benefit rules and compliance is dependant upon the employee's performance and would be assessed in consultation with their line managers.
Line managers observe personal adviser interviews against a set of behaviour criteria set out in the Jobcentre Plus Quality Assessment Framework to identify any further learning needs. Accuracy and quality checks are carried out on decision makers and these support the line managers in identifying further learning requirements.
Jobseeker's Allowance
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what estimate she has made of the number of people who will have been claiming income-based jobseeker's allowance for (a) six months or more, (b) 12 months or more, (c) 18 months or more and (d) 24 months or more in (i) 2009-10 and (ii) 2010-11 on the basis of the assumptions about unemployment made in respect of the 2009 Budget. [277004]
Jim Knight [holding answer 1 June 2009]: The Department has not estimated the number of people who will have been claiming the income-based component of jobseeker's allowance for different durations.
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what the average number of days between the completion of processing of an application for jobseeker's allowance (JSA) and the first payment of JSA was in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. [286642]
Jim Knight: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is the responsibility of the acting chief executive, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking what the average number of days between the completion of processing of an application for Jobseeker's Allowance and the first payment of Jobseeker's Allowance was in the latest period for which figures are available; and if she will make a statement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The current Jobcentre Plus target for the average actual clearance time taken to process Jobseeker's Allowance claims is 11.5 days. This time is calculated across an average of all the claims cleared in any given month looking at the date the customer first contacted Jobcentre Plus or the customer's first day of unemployment, whichever is the later. The end date is the date a formal decision is made on the claim and a notification is issued to the customer on entitlement.
The current year to date achievement is 9.7 days to May 2009. The first payment of Jobseeker's Allowance is issued to the customer as soon as entitlement is decided.
Jobseeker's Allowance: Young People
Steve Webb: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions how many (a) 18 and (b) 19 year-old jobseeker's allowance claimants reported having been unemployed for over 12 months on initial application in the latest period for which information is available; and if she will make a statement. [287313]
Jim Knight: The information is not available.
Members: Correspondence
Mr. McLoughlin: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions when the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State will respond to the letter from the right hon. Member for West Derbyshire of 30 April 2009 on statutory adoption pay. [285494]
Mr. McFadden: I have been asked to reply.
My noble Friend, the Minister for Postal Affairs and Employment Relations, responded to the right hon. Member on 16 July.
Mortgages: Government Assistance
Mr. Burstow: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bury North of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 270W, on mortgages: Government assistance, how many claims for mortgage relief made with (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) income support were (i) received, (ii) processed, (iii) awarded and (iv) refused in each jobcentre in each region in (A) January 2008 and (B) January 2009; and if she will make a statement. [264353]
Helen Goodman: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the acting chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Mel Groves. I have asked him to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the answer to the hon. Member for Bury North of 10 March 2009, Official Report, column 270W, on mortgages: Government assistance, how many claims for mortgage relief made with (a) jobseeker's allowance and (b) income support were (i) received, (ii) processed, (iii) awarded and (iv) refused in each jobcentre in each region in (A) January 2008 and (B) January 2009; and if he will make a statement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Acting Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
Claims with a mortgage interest element are received by our Benefit Delivery Centres. I can provide you with data for both January 2008 and January 2009 by Benefit Delivery Centre, but not by Jobcentre as you have requested. Information by Jobcentre in each region could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
For Jobseeker's Allowance, we collect data on claims with a mortgage interest element received and claims processed. Our benefit processing system for Jobseeker's Allowance does not record data about the number of awards and refusals.
For Income Support, we record data about claims with a mortgage interest element received, processed, awarded and refused.
The available information has been placed in the Library.
New Deal Schemes
Mrs. May: To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions what changes have been made to the new Jobcentre Plus jobseekers' regime designed as part of the Flexible New Deal since it was first announced. [283565]
Jim Knight: The Government first announced their intention to introduce the Flexible New Deal in the July 2007 Green Paper 'In work, better off: next steps to full employment' [Cm 7130]. Following a period of consultation, the different stages of the Jobseeker's Regime were set out in the December 2007 DWP publication 'Ready for work: full employment in our generation' [Cm 7290].
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