Work programme

The Department for Work and Pensions has published the second official statistics from the Work Programme. This shows the number of claimants that have been referred to the Work Programme and the number of claimants who have subsequently started the programme, between June 2011 and January 2012.

The Department for Work and Pensions has published the first official statistics from the Work Programme. This shows the number of claimants that have been referred to the Work Programme and the number of claimants who have subsequently started the programme, between June and October 2011.

The Employment Related Services Association (ERSA), the trade body for the welfare to work industry, today (21 February) welcomed the publication by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) of the first official statistics relating to the Work Programme.

In response to the news that referral figures for the first five months of the Work Programme were significantly higher than those previously predicted, Kirsty McHugh, ERSA’s Chief Executive said:

A4e, currently a Work Programme provider, has alerted the police of internal fraud and four people have been arrested. A4e allegedly received funding for some clients whom the four staff members only put back to work for one day. Two women, aged 28 and 49, and two men, aged 35 and 41, were arrested. They were released on bail until mid-March. 

Today (15 February) the Department for Work and Pensions has released the most recent statistics on pre-Work Programme employment support and 'Get Britain Working' and statistics on Mandatory Work Activity.

The pre-Work Programme employment support and 'Get Britain Working' statistics, include information from January 2011 to November 2011. 

The key statistics are as follows: 

On 26 March Inclusion will be holding a one day conference which puts employers at the centre of the government Work Programme.  ‘Tapping into Talent’ will feature showcase partnerships between employers and providers.

The Rt Hon. Chris Grayling MP is confirmed to give the morning keynote address and open the event which is supported by the Recruitment and Employment Confederation, the British Chambers of Commerce and the Chartered Institute for Personnel and Development.

The Public Accounts Committee hearing on Work Programme on 8 February included a number of factual inaccuracies A4e wishes to clarify.

A4e performance as a welfare to work contractor

Some committee members referred to A4e's early performance figures in the previous Pathways to Work contract without looking at performance during the life of the contract. They also confused A4e performance with another contractor, whose performance level was significantly lower at that early stage.

On the 8 February evidence of the Work Programme's introduction was analysed by the Public Accounts Committee. Debates centred on whether current performance reflected expectations within the original design of the programme.

The Employment Related Services Association (ERSA), the trade association for the welfare to work industry, today provides the first indicative performance figures for the Work Programme.

Based on data from some of the largest prime contractors of the Work Programme, ERSA figures show that between 18% and 23% of customers who were referred to the Work Programme in June 2011 have already started employment, meaning that one in five customers have already found a job. 

Written by Paul Bivand, Head of Statistics and Analysis at Inclusion.

DWP has today released new estimates for Work Programme volumes as a result of the November 2011 OBR forecasts.

NEW. Spreadsheet with tables and charts for each Contract Package Area comparing the new view with the original view.

There is serious concern over the power of the voluntary sector in delivering employment-related services under the Work Programme. The Third Sector Research Centre has released an evidence review calling for more information about third sector organisations involved in the Work Programme. There is little evidence on who they are or their characteristics. 

The National Audit Office report Introduction of the Work Programme finds that job entry rates for Jobseeker's Allowance payments for over-25s will be at 26% as opposed to 40% as predicted by the Department for Work and Pensions. This analysis is based upon the performance results of the Flexible New Deal and impacts of features specific to the Work Programme.