Plan for Jobs and employment support

Work and Pensions Committee Closed Inquiry
Opened: 11 Jul 2022 Closed: 31 Oct 2023 Parliament page
The Committee looked at the effectiveness of Government support to get people into employment, including disadvantaged groups such as those in low-paid jobs and young people. The Committee looked to find out: What is driving increases in economic inactivity - for example amongst people with health conditions and older people? … Read more
25 Recommendations
13 Conclusions
1 Report
8 Oral sessions
3 Letters
8 Events
Activity timeline 21 events
23 Oct
2023
Report published
18 Oct
2023
Correspondence
19 Jul
2023
Report published
7 Jun
2023
Correspondence
3 May
2023
Oral evidence
3 May
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House
19 Apr
2023
Oral evidence
19 Apr
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Wilson Room, Portcullis House
29 Mar
2023
Correspondence
15 Mar
2023
Oral evidence
15 Mar
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 16, Palace of Westminster
8 Feb
2023
Oral evidence
Oral evidence sessions 8 sessions
3 May 2023
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Guy Opperman MP · Department for Work and Pensions Katie Farrington · Department for Work and Pensions Sophie Dean · Department for Work and Pensions Tom Pursglove MP · Home Office
19 Apr 2023
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Alex Till · National Enterprise Network David Hale · Federation of Small Businesses Jonny Briggs · Aviva Matt Dooley · Momentic Limited
15 Mar 2023
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Dr Katy Jones · Manchester Metropolitan University Professor Dan Finn · University of Portsmouth
8 Feb 2023
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Elizabeth Taylor · The Employment Related Services Association (ERSA) Fiona Monahan · Ingeus Graham Parry · Groundwork Liz Sewell · Belina Grow Rhodri Thomas · Reed in Partnership Richard Clifton · Shaw Trust Rosie Ginday · Miss Macaroon
25 Jan 2023
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Councillor Kieron Williams · Central London Forward Councillor Toby Savage · Local Government Association Dr Shriti Pattani · Society of Occupational Medicine Graham Whitham · Greater Manchester Poverty Action Luke Price · The Centre for Ageing Better Peter Murphy · Wise Age Professor Kevin Bampton · British Occupational Hygiene Society
16 Nov 2022
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Barry Fletcher · Career Connect Billy Harding · Centrepoint Dr Jenny Ceolta-Smith · Long Covid Support and Long Covid Work James Taylor · Scope Jane Hunt · Association of Disabled Professionals Professor Kim Hoque · Disability@Work Richard Rigby · The Prince’s Trust
26 Oct 2022
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Ben Harrison · The Work Foundation Dr Eleanor Carter · Government Outcomes Lab, Blavatnik School of Government, University of Oxford Jonathan Cribb · Institute for Fiscal Studies Louise Murphy · Resolution Foundation Stephen Evans · Learning and Work Institute Tony Wilson · Institute for Employment Studies
5 Jan 2022
View on parliament.uk
Work and Pensions Committee
Hannah Slaughter · Resolution Foundation Richard Hughes · Office for Budget Responsibility Sam Avanzo Windett · Learning and Work Institute Tony Wilson · Institute for Employment Studies
Title HC No. Published Items Response
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and employment support HC 600 19 Jul 2023 38 Overdue
Recommendations & Conclusions
8 results
Clear
4 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Establish an overarching funding structure and dedicated pot for all Youth Hubs
We welcome the expanded funding in Spring Budget 2023 for Youth Hubs. DWP need to establish an overarching funding structure and dedicated funding pot for Youth Hubs. DWP must also undertake an analysis of existing Youth Hubs to establish good … Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the call for an overarching funding structure and dedicated pot for Youth Hubs, highlighting that various existing funding mechanisms are already utilised. However, it confirmed that a Process Evaluation and impact assessment of the Youth Offer are underway, with findings to be shared internally to inform future improvements.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
6 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Complete national rollout of Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care by March 2024
The Government should have the IPSPC initiative rolled out across the country by the end of this financial year in March 2024.
Government Response
The government stated that IPSPC services will support 25,000 people in 41 local authorities by March 2025, rather than rolling out nationally by March 2024 as recommended. Learning from IPSPC will inform the national Universal Support program from 2024.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
9 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Produce employer hiring guide within six months encouraging flexible and part-time working opportunities
Many people are not able to work full-time, and a lack of suitable, flexible work is barring people from engaging with the labour market. This is particularly evident for people who have additional needs or responsibilities which make more traditional … Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the recommendation to produce a new hiring guide, stating that it will instead work with existing initiatives and the Flexible Working Taskforce to encourage employers to sign-up to the 'Happy To Talk Flexible Working' strapline.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
11 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Establish an accreditation scheme to champion older workers and improve workplaces for over 50s.
DWP should establish a scheme which champions older workers and encourages employers to hire staff over the age of 50. This scheme should push to improve workplaces for older people by providing an outcomes-based accreditation to employers who can demonstrate … Read more
Government Response
The government explicitly rejects establishing an age-specific scheme, accreditation, or data publication requirement for employers, instead highlighting existing initiatives like Midlife MOTs, employer engagement, and the Menopause Employment Champion to support older workers.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
12 Conclusion Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Introduce banded thresholds for disabled employment to attain higher Disability Confident accreditation levels.
18,400 employers now have Disability Confident accreditation, helping to encourage employers to recognise the importance of making the workplace accessible for disabled people. However, this scheme focuses on processes rather than outcomes. It does not do enough to ensure that … Read more
Government Response
The government rejected the introduction of banded thresholds for the percentage of disabled people employers must employ for Disability Confident accreditation, arguing they don't necessarily lead to fulfilling employment. It did state that it will be improving scheme guidance following a review to ensure employers are aware of requirements.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
27 Conclusion Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Evaluate NEA and design a new inclusive self-employment support programme for disabled and older people
With the withdrawal of the New Enterprise Allowance (NEA), there is no longer a dedicated self-employment support programme provided by DWP. Many people, including older people and disabled people, would benefit from the opportunity to start their own business as … Read more
Government Response
The government explicitly states it does not plan to develop a new self-employment support programme or evaluate the NEA, instead highlighting existing external support mechanisms and DWP's Flexible Support Fund.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
35 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Implement a devolved support model to separate employment support and benefit administration.
The two-fold responsibilities of DWP to both provide employment support and administer benefits can deter people from seeking support and damage the trust that claimants have in support services. A more devolved model of support should be used to engender … Read more
Government Response
The government explicitly rejects the recommendation to separate employment support and benefit administration, asserting that conditionality remains a key lever for managing welfare spending.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
37 Recommendation Rejected
Eighth Report - Plan for Jobs and…
Establish clear targets and measure performance for all programmes following OSR guidance.
DWP does not consistently set clear targets for its programmes or produce results against these targets. Where it has set targets previously, such as for Way to Work, these have been criticised as being inadequately defined and the results against … Read more
Government Response
The government describes its existing process for agreeing aims and objectives and monitoring policy performance, but states that the appropriateness of public targets and monitoring varies case-by-case, implicitly rejecting the recommendation to consistently apply OSR guidance for all programmes.
Department for Work and Pensions
View details
Government Response AI assessment · 38 of 25 classified
Accepted 11
Accepted in Part 6
Acknowledged 4
Deferred 8
Not Addressed 1
Rejected 8
Total 25 recs + 13 conclusions
Correspondence 3 letters
18 Oct 2023 Correspondence with the Economic Secretary to the Treasury relating to income protection insurance
Parliament page
7 Jun 2023 Correspondence with the Minister for Employment relating to Plan for Jobs and employment support
Parliament page
29 Mar 2023 Correspondence with the Minister for Employment and the Minister for Disabled People, Health and Work relating to statistics for DWP employment support schemes
Parliament page