Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the case for continuing the Household Support Fund after it ends in September.
Answered by Baroness Sherlock - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
£500 million is being provided to enable the current Household Support Fund, including funding for Devolved Administrations through the Barnett formula to be spent at their discretion. This means Local Authorities in England are receiving £421 million to support those in need locally.
The current Household Support Fund will be in place until 30 September 2024.
As a new government, we are reviewing all policies, including the Household Support Fund.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 7 December (HL3726), what components of this "comprehensive learning journey" do all work coaches undertake; and what are the "tools, skills and behaviours" required of those coaches.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
Work Coach Learning equips staff with tools, knowledge, skills and behaviours through a rich mix of topics, to enable them to support each claimant as an individual.
This includes building a coaching skill set, focus on vulnerable customers and those with complex needs as well as those with health conditions, the impacts of their condition and what support is available to assist individuals moving closer to the working environment. DWP ensures that staff access the most up to date advice and expertise on a particular health condition/ complex need to support all individual customers requirements through signposted guidance support and websites to effectively use resources from both internal and external sites.
Work Coaches also receive on-going learning for their roles and access to guidance which is refreshed at regular intervals. Please see attached list of learning which Work Coaches undertake as part of their comprehensive learning journey.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 7 December (HL3726), who provides this training to work coaches; and what qualifications do they have.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
Work Coach Learning is delivered by DWP Learning Delivery Officers. Learning Delivery Officers receive a bespoke Training for Trainer event which is facilitated by experienced DWP Learning Delivery Officers. This is followed by an intensive consolidation period, peer support and a robust quality assurance process conducted by Line Managers throughout their onward delivery.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 7 December (HL3726), how much time is each work coach assigned to a young person.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
The Department for Work and Pensions’ Youth Offer is providing individually tailored work coach support to young people aged 16-24 who are in the Universal Credit Intensive Work Search regime. This includes intensive support during the first 13 weeks of a claim through the Youth Employment Programme, and access to Youth Employability Coaches (YECs) who are helping young people overcome complex barriers to employment, as well as offering 6 weeks of in-work support once they move into work. YECs also work closely alongside Disability Employment Advisors to support those with disabilities and health conditions, and partner organisations who can provide specialist advice.
The aim of the 13-week Youth Employment Programme is to help claimants access opportunities to move them closer, and into work, including work experience placements, Sector-based Work Academy Programmes, traineeships, apprenticeships, and equivalent opportunities in Scotland and Wales. Participants will see a Work Coach on a weekly basis for the duration of the Programme with additional time at week 2 for a Skills Review and a Progress Review at week 11.
At the end of the 13 weeks claimants will continue to receive support through the core Jobcentre offer with the frequency and length of interventions determined by the individual circumstances of the claimant, the duration of their claim, and the level of support required at that particular time.
The Youth Offer also provides a network of Youth Hubs in locations across Great Britain. The Hubs are co-located and co-delivered in partnership with local providers and provide place-based support to the help young people in the community move into work.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the Written Answer by Baroness Stedman-Scott on 7 December (HL3726), how often is the provision of work coaching refreshed.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
Work Coaches undertake job specific learning when they are new to role, as well as consolidation of their learning once training is completed. They are supported by Team Leaders who are responsible for assuring the quality of services through a combination of observation of interviews, feedback, coaching and appraisal.
Work Coaches continue to receive ongoing learning to ensure they are confident in providing claimants with the support they need. They also have access to guidance which is refreshed at regular intervals.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what qualifications coaches at the Department for Work and Pensions must obtain when working with young people seeking employment.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
Work Coaches are not required to hold qualifications that are specific to the work they do with young people seeking employment. They undergo a comprehensive learning journey designed to equip them with the tools, skills and behaviours required to provide a high quality, efficient service to all claimants. Work Coaches receive on-going learning in their roles and access to guidance which is refreshed at regular intervals.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government, further to the letter from Baroness Stedman-Scott to all members of the House of Lords on 22 November, what additional measures they are putting in place to help young people find employment during the "economic challenges we are facing".
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
The Department for Work and Pensions’ Youth Offer is providing individually tailored work coach support to young people aged 16-24 who are in the Universal Credit Intensive Work Search group.
This includes intensive support during the first 13 weeks of a claim through the Youth Employment Programme and a network of Youth Hubs across Great Britain that provide place-based support in partnerships with local providers to help young people into work. The Youth Offer also provides Youth Employability Coaches who support young people facing additional barriers (such as homelessness, addiction, and other complex needs) as well as offering 6 weeks of in-work support once the young person secures a job or an apprenticeship. Youth Employability Coaches also work closely with Disability Employment Advisors to support those with disabilities and health conditions, and partner organisations who can provide specialist advice.
Departments are aligning their support across Government to help young people access high quality training and apprenticeship opportunities, as well as preparing them to take advantage of new jobs created in existing and growing sectors.
For example, DWP and DfE officials continue to work together on the key areas of improving local skills provision and maximising awareness of skills opportunities in England. This includes taking steps to enhance the quality and joining up of services through Work Coaches and National Careers Service Advisors.
To help young people who are already in work and on low incomes to progress, we are extending the support Jobcentres provide to help them increase their earnings and move into better paid, quality jobs. As mentioned in the letter, the nationwide roll-out of the In-Work Progression offer will focus on removing barriers to progression, such as addressing skills gaps.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of data from (1) the Royal Life Saving Society, and (2) the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, that there were at least 50 water-related deaths between June and 16 August this year; and what steps they will take to enhance prevention measures for water-related deaths in the future.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
No formal assessment has been made from the data. However, the Cabinet Office are leading on a cross-government exercise on inland water safety.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many young people aged 16 to 19 who are receiving Universal Credit have successfully completed a post-16 qualification.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.
Asked by: Lord Storey (Liberal Democrat - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask Her Majesty's Government how many young people aged 16 to 19 who are on Universal Credit sre studying for a post-16 qualification.
Answered by Baroness Stedman-Scott - Opposition Whip (Lords)
The information requested is not readily available and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.