Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are providing for employer-college apprenticeship collaborations and how they plan to extend this support.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Skills is a devolved matter, and the response outlines the information for England only.
The government provides a range of support to help employers and training providers, including colleges, to offer apprenticeships.
Government pays 100% of apprentice training costs for employers who do not pay the levy when they take on apprentices aged 16-21, and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan or have been, or are, in local authority care. For all other apprentices, government pays 95% of training costs for employers that don’t pay the levy.
The government pays £1,000 to both employers and providers for apprentices aged 16-18, and for apprentices aged 19-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan or have been, or are, in local authority care.
In August, the government launched the first new foundation apprenticeships which are underpinned by an employer incentive payment of £2,000. This will be paid in three instalments, the first two spread across the foundation apprenticeship, with the final payment made when an apprentice progresses onto their next apprenticeship.
In addition, the government continues to simplify the apprenticeship system to make it easier for employers and providers to focus on delivering high-quality training. This includes reforms to the apprenticeship payment system which will cut red tape by stopping the need for providers to log the same data multiple times, and the introduction of a one click employer onboarding process which allows providers to complete the setup for an employer, who can then approve it in a single step.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the barriers to local recruitment in areas of greatest deprivation.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We recognise the importance of considering the needs of local labour markets in addressing barriers to recruitment. As our Get Britain Working White Paper set out, areas with higher levels of deprivation often have lower levels of educational attainment and there are more working-age adults living with major illness in the most deprived areas (14.6%), which is more than double the rate in the least deprived areas (6.3%).
The Get Britain Working White Paper set out our ambitions to transform employment support and tackle economic inactivity. As part of this, local areas in England are producing Local Get Britain Working Plans to develop a system-wide approach to identifying and addressing local labour market challenges. Further, Trailblazers to test how locally-led responses to tackling economic inactivity and young people not in education, employment and training are being delivered across England and Wales.
Furthermore, our supported employment programme, Connect to Work, has been designed alongside Local Authorities and is being delivered by local areas in England and Wales to help more disabled people, those with health conditions and people with complex barriers to employment help to find sustainable work.
The UK Government will respect devolution settlements and work closely with the Devolved Governments, including the Northern Ireland Executive, to share best practice about how our reforms to reduce economic inactivity are working.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to address the number of those who are economically inactive due to long-term sickness.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Long-term sickness continues to be the most common reason for economic inactivity among the working age population. Good work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. Backed by £240 million investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched last November will drive forward approaches to tackling economic inactivity and work toward the long-term ambition of an 80% employment rate.
Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems.
Measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies, Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care and WorkWell.
It is also recognised that employers play an important role in addressing health and disability. To build on this, the DWP and DHSC Joint Work & Health Directorate (JWHD) is facilitating “Keep Britain Working”, an independent review of the role of UK employers in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces. The lead reviewer, Sir Charlie Mayfield, is expected to bring forward recommendations in Autumn 2025. Additionally, the JWHD has developed a digital information service for employers, continues to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme, and continues to increase access to Occupational Health.
In our March Green Paper, we set out our Pathways to Work Guarantee, backed by £1 billion a year of new additional funding by 2030. We will build towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and those with health conditions on out of work benefits.
The 10 Year Health Plan, published in July, stated our intention to break down barriers to opportunity by delivering the holistic support that people need to access and thrive in employment by ensuring a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. The Plan sets out the vision for what good joined-up care looks like for people with a combination of health and care needs, including for disabled people. Furthermore, it outlines how the neighbourhood health service will join up support from across the work, health and skills systems to help address the multiple complex challenges that often stop people finding and staying in work.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to support expanding employer-led return-to-work schemes for those with mental health conditions.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
His Majesty’s Government recognises the vital role that employer-led return-to-work schemes play in supporting individuals with mental health conditions to remain in or re-enter the workforce. A range of initiatives and services are in place to help employers create inclusive, supportive environments that facilitate sustainable employment for those experiencing mental ill health.
Occupational Health (OH) services can be effective in supporting return-to-work planning. OH professionals provide tailored assessments and advice to help employers understand the impact of mental health conditions on work capacity and identify appropriate adjustments. This includes phased return plans, workplace modifications, and ongoing support to ensure a safe and productive reintegration into work. OH services also help employers meet their legal obligations under the Equality Act 2010 by advising on reasonable adjustments.
The Support with Employee Health and Disability digital service, which provides tailored guidance for employers managing health and disability in the workplace, including mental health. The service, which includes guidance on disclosures, having conversations, legal obligations and making reasonable adjustments, is in national live testing and continues to be updated on an iterative basis, including in response to user research.
The Access to Work scheme offers personalised support for individuals with mental health conditions. This includes grants for workplace adaptations, specialist equipment, and tailored mental health support such as one-to-one sessions with professionals and workplace coping strategies. The scheme complements employers’ legal duties by funding support beyond reasonable adjustments, helping individuals stay in or return to work.
Additionally, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance and resources through its Working Minds campaign, which encourages employers to take proactive steps to prevent work-related stress. The campaign promotes a five-step approach—Reach out, Recognise, Respond, Reflect, and make it Routine—to help businesses address the root causes of stress and foster mentally healthy workplaces.
These efforts are part of a broader Government commitment to reduce economic inactivity and improve employment outcomes for people with health conditions. Importantly, the Keep Britain Working Review, led by Sir Charlie Mayfield, is exploring what more employers and government can do to tackle economic inactivity due to ill-health and disability.
Together, these measures aim to empower employers with the tools and knowledge needed to support employees with mental health conditions, ensuring that more people can get in and get on in work.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how they plan to reform Jobcentres to ensure they are better able to support local hiring.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are reforming Jobcentre Plus and creating a new service across Great Britain that will enable everyone to access support to find good, meaningful work, and support to help them to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers.
The new service will be for anyone who wants to look for work, wants help to increase their earnings, or who wants help to change their career or re-train. Employment and careers support will be available to all - not just those on benefits - who want support to find or progress in work.
We will ensure the service is responsive to local employers, inclusive for all users, and works in partnership with other local services. It will be a locally tailored and embedded service, designed to meet the different needs of local labour markets, local people and local employers. It will be an active partner with key local stakeholders and providers of services and will be flexible, operating differently in different areas to reflect local systems.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they intend to reform disability benefits to support transition into part-time or supported work; and, if so, how they plan to do so.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government is committed to removing the barriers to work. We want to give people the confidence that working will not trigger a reassessment and a potential loss of benefits. That is why we are establishing in law the principle that work, in and of itself, will not lead to a reassessment. For people receiving Universal Credit, PIP (in England and Wales, Department for Communities is mirroring in Northern Ireland), or New Style Employment and Support Allowance, we are introducing legislation that guarantees that trying work, in and of itself, will not be considered a relevant change of circumstance that will trigger a PIP award review or WCA reassessment.
By legislating to guarantee that work in and of itself will not trigger a reassessment we are taking an important first step to address these barriers and give customers the confidence to try work. The draft regulations are published in the House of Commons library.
Deposited paper DEP2025-0425 - Deposited papers - UK Parliament
The Government plans to legislate for this change to take effect in 2026. This will run alongside the biggest employment support package for disabled people and people with health conditions in more than a generation, backed by £1 billion a year of new, additional funding by 2030. This new support offer will roll out from April 2026, so that all affected by the reduction to the UC health element will be offered support, provided by a dedicated Pathways to Work adviser. There will be 1,000 advisers in place across Britain through Jobcentre Plus, equivalent to two in every jobcentre. This will be in place across England, Scotland and Wales, and people affected will be able to access a conversation about their needs, goals and aspirations; offered one-to-one follow-on support, and given help to access additional work, health and skills support that can meet their needs.
Our Pathways to Work Guarantee will provide work, health and skills support for disabled people and those with health conditions claiming out of work benefits. We anticipate that the Pathways to Work Guarantee once fully rolled out will include:
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the Office for Budget Responsibility’s assessment in its Economic and Fiscal Outlook March 2025 that 3 million people will be in receipt of the Universal Credit health element in 2029–30; and how many people they forecast will be in receipt of it in 2029–30, by age and region.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Memorandum of understanding between the Office for Budget Responsibility, HM Treasury, the Department for Work & Pensions, and HM Revenue & Customs sets out the responsibilities of the OBR and government departments in the preparation of forecasts for welfare spending at fiscal events, including how this is presented in the OBR’s publication the Economic and Fiscal Outlook.
In line with paragraph 2.7 of the MoU, the DWP forecasts for the UC health journey caseloads are produced in consultation with OBR and are consistent with the OBR Spring Statement 2025 forecasts. These will be published in the DWP’s Outturn and Forecast tables on 23rd April.
Figures by region and age are not available for UC health journey caseloads.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to address falling school readiness, following the findings of the Kindred Squared School Readiness Survey, published on 30 January.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government welcomes the focus from the Kindred Squared School Readiness Survey. Preparing children for school should be a partnership between parents, early years settings and schools.
That is why this government has set a milestone of a record proportion of children starting school ready to learn in the classroom. We will measure our progress through 75% of children at the end of reception reaching a good level of development in the early years foundation stage profile assessment by 2028.
This is an increase from 67.7% currently and would mean an additional 40,000 to 45,000 children a year hitting developmental goals.
To achieve this milestone, we will:
We will continue to work closely with parents and teachers as we deliver our ambitious reforms to break down barriers to opportunity and give every child the best start in life.
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch on 11 March (HL5240), what is the turnover and gross value added for each of the 73 industries covered in their definition of energy-intensive industry.
Answered by Baroness Jones of Whitchurch
Asked by: Lord Elliott of Mickle Fell (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask His Majesty's Government what is the average size of a UK industrial site by land area.
Answered by Lord Vallance of Balham - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology does not hold information on the average size of a UK industrial site by land area.