News: Community work placements in Rotherham
Interserve Working Futures has secured the government contract to help the long-term unemployed in South Yorkshire gain valuable work experience.
The new scheme – Help to Work – will give Jobcentre staff a new range of options to support the hardest to help get off benefits and into work.
Starting from June 2014, Community Work Placements will be one of three intensive options that Jobcentre Plus advisers can consider for Jobseeker's Allowance claimants who return from the Work Programme.
Claimants who lack work experience - and where this is felt to be holding them back from finding a job - may be asked to undertake a placement, which will also benefit their local community. This would include a range of roles in the voluntary and community sector that will give the claimant skills and experience within the work place. This could include gardening projects, running community cafes or even restoring historical sites and war memorials.
The placements will be for up to six months for 30 hours a week and will be backed up by at least four hours of supported job searching each week to help turn the experience into full time employment.
It will be for claimants who encounter multiple barriers to work and who would benefit from relevant and current work experience to help them back into sustainable employment.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: "A key part of our long-term economic plan is to move to full employment, making sure that everyone who can work is in work. We are seeing record levels of employment in Britain, as more and more people find a job, but we need to look at those who are persistently stuck on benefits. This scheme will provide more help than ever before, getting people into work and on the road to a more secure future."
Bob Vince, developments director at Interserve, said: "We are delighted to have been awarded these contracts, which will enable us to use our experience in this area to help job seekers add relevant skills to their CV's and provide sustainable employment opportunities for many people. We have strong relationships with many voluntary sector partners who can assist us in the delivery of this."
The cabinet at Rotherham Council recently discussed a local review into the government's Work Programme, which provides support, work experience and training for up to two years to help the long term unemployed (over three months) find and stay in work.
The report raised the issue of sanctions and stated that communication with claimants needed to be improved; a degree of local flexibility should be introduced; vulnerable claimants should be able to access one to one support; and a local working protocol should be established with the aim of ensuring complete fairness in the process of implementing sanctions in Rotherham.
The two Work Programme prime contractors for South Yorkshire – Serco and A4e - were invited to take part in the review either by giving evidence at meetings or answering written questions. Both turned down the opportunity to provide evidence and to have their input considered by the review, with A4e taking the view – based on advice from their Department for Work and Pensions account manager - that it would be inappropriate to respond to the panel's questions.
Images: Department for Work and Pensions
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The new scheme – Help to Work – will give Jobcentre staff a new range of options to support the hardest to help get off benefits and into work.
Starting from June 2014, Community Work Placements will be one of three intensive options that Jobcentre Plus advisers can consider for Jobseeker's Allowance claimants who return from the Work Programme.
Claimants who lack work experience - and where this is felt to be holding them back from finding a job - may be asked to undertake a placement, which will also benefit their local community. This would include a range of roles in the voluntary and community sector that will give the claimant skills and experience within the work place. This could include gardening projects, running community cafes or even restoring historical sites and war memorials.
The placements will be for up to six months for 30 hours a week and will be backed up by at least four hours of supported job searching each week to help turn the experience into full time employment.
It will be for claimants who encounter multiple barriers to work and who would benefit from relevant and current work experience to help them back into sustainable employment.
Prime Minister David Cameron said: "A key part of our long-term economic plan is to move to full employment, making sure that everyone who can work is in work. We are seeing record levels of employment in Britain, as more and more people find a job, but we need to look at those who are persistently stuck on benefits. This scheme will provide more help than ever before, getting people into work and on the road to a more secure future."
Bob Vince, developments director at Interserve, said: "We are delighted to have been awarded these contracts, which will enable us to use our experience in this area to help job seekers add relevant skills to their CV's and provide sustainable employment opportunities for many people. We have strong relationships with many voluntary sector partners who can assist us in the delivery of this."
The cabinet at Rotherham Council recently discussed a local review into the government's Work Programme, which provides support, work experience and training for up to two years to help the long term unemployed (over three months) find and stay in work.
The report raised the issue of sanctions and stated that communication with claimants needed to be improved; a degree of local flexibility should be introduced; vulnerable claimants should be able to access one to one support; and a local working protocol should be established with the aim of ensuring complete fairness in the process of implementing sanctions in Rotherham.
The two Work Programme prime contractors for South Yorkshire – Serco and A4e - were invited to take part in the review either by giving evidence at meetings or answering written questions. Both turned down the opportunity to provide evidence and to have their input considered by the review, with A4e taking the view – based on advice from their Department for Work and Pensions account manager - that it would be inappropriate to respond to the panel's questions.
Images: Department for Work and Pensions
Rotherham
