30 November 2004 - Jobcentre advisers help double the number of IB claimants getting back to work in reform pilot areas
The personal touch is helping twice as many people on Incapacity Benefit back to work in innovative “Pathways to Work” areas, says a report published today.
The package of financial and rehabilitation support led by trained Jobcentre Plus personal advisers is paying off, according to new research published a year after the first pilots were launched.
Work and Pensions Secretary Alan Johnson said:
“Nine out of ten people expect to work again when they first claim incapacity benefits. Our Pathways to Work pilots are helping sick and disabled people to manage their conditions, fulfil their aspirations and move off benefit and into work.
"Thanks to Pathways to Work people are swapping sick notes for payslips and getting a salary rather than a benefit. That’s good news for them and for society.”
Research published today shows that the seven pilots to help people on incapacity benefits into work have been achieving early success with:
- Double the number of people getting jobs through Jobcentre Plus compared to last year.
- Between eight and ten per cent increase in the rate of people coming off incapacity benefits after four months of their claim compared to non-pilot areas.
- Five times as many people in pilot areas are joining New Deal for Disabled People compared to old style Jobcentres.
- 10 per cent of people taking part in the pilots have volunteered to do so having heard about the scheme.
Research by the National Centre for Social Research found that personal advisers in Jobcentres were very positive about the IB reforms and found the work rewarding. They had also been impressed by the positive feedback they got from IB claimants about condition management programmes and the Return To Work Credit, two key parts of the reform package.
Notes for editors
- Pathways to Work pilots offer early, sustained support to involve Jobcentre Plus, the NHS and the voluntary sector to support people with health conditions and disabilities.
- There are seven pilots – the first wave was launched in October 2003 (Renfrewshire, Derby and Bridgend) with a further four launched in the second wave in April 2004 (Essex, Gateshead and S. Tyneside, Somerset and E. Lancs).
- The Pathways to Work pilots include:
- Support from a highly skilled personal adviser support and contact every month in the first 8 months of the claim when people can be most readily helped back to work
- Groundbreaking NHS rehabilitation support so that they can learn to manage and cope with their health condition (e.g. back pain, angina, mental illness) so they can get back to work
- Strong local partnerships with the New Deal for Disabled People - voluntary and private sector employment advisers
- £40 a week return to work credit once they get a job so that it always pays to get back to work
- Work with local GPs and employers to ensure people on IB are not discouraged from working again
- The Pathways pilots have targeted new IB claimants and existing claimants who volunteer. The approach is being extended to those who have been on IB for over a year from early next year.
For more information contact: John Fennessy on 020 7238 0762
Press office: 020 7238 0866
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Website: www.dwp.gov.uk