Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many young people have applied for a Kickstart scheme placement in the Midlands.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Work Coaches refer suitable candidates to available vacancies, statistics on referrals is not currently available.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to offer tailored support to help unemployed people back into work in Sutton Coldfield constituency.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We are providing £1.2 billion to enhance work search support service in Great Britain which includes doubling the number of frontline Work Coaches in Jobcentre Plus before the end of the financial year. We are also increasing the flexible support fund which includes extending the Rapid Response Service, tripling the number of Sector-based Work Academy Placements in England, and expanding the work and health programme to deliver Job Entry: Targeted Support. Further, the Job finding support service will provide tailored one-to-one job finding support to the recently unemployed.
The Department is working closely with other government departments, external organisations and local partners to support people into work. The Kickstart scheme was recently announced to help young people aged 16-24 find 6-month work places and in Sutton Coldfield there are 9 Small and Medium Employers have expressed an interested in taking part in the Kickstart Scheme. We urge all those wishing to get involved to visit gov.uk.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what additional skills support and training her Department offers to unemployed people in Royal Sutton Coldfield who are aged (a) over 50 years and (b) under 25 years.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Our Plan for Jobs is a Cross-Government initiative that will promote employment opportunities to people of all ages.
Our local jobcentres are now fully reopened and we will provide additional support to claimants by doubling the number of Work Coaches in this financial year. We are expanding our sector-based work academy programme (SWAP), which supports claimants aged 18+ into a wide range of current vacancies through a short period of training and work experience linked to a guaranteed job interview.
We have launched our ambitious Kickstart scheme, which will provide a vital first step on the jobs ladder for many young people. Funding for 6-month Kickstart placements covers the relevant National Minimum Wage rate for 25 hours a week, the associated employer National Insurance contributions, and employer minimum automatic enrolment contributions, as well as £1500 of employability support.
Nine Small and Medium Employers in Sutton Coldfield are interested in taking part in the Kickstart Scheme. Each have under 30 vacancies to offer and we are waiting for intermediaries to be appointed, who will then make applications on their behalf via Gov.uk.
Jobcentre Plus Older Claimants Champions work with Work Coaches to deliver Jobcentre Plus’ commitment to support older people to find work and stay in work. Champions liaise with employers and providers to promote and raise the profile and benefits of employing older workers.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking with employers to help ensure as many young people as possible in Royal Sutton Coldfield benefit from the Kickstart scheme.
Answered by Mims Davies - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Jobcentre Plus staff are meeting employers and organisations in their area to promote Kickstart and encourage participation with the scheme.
Officials have also engaged with representatives from the Greater Birmingham and Solihull Local Enterprise Partnership to engage with their networks of local employers and organisations.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps her Department is taking to reduce the waiting time for people with Parkinson’s disease to receive personal independence payments.
Answered by Justin Tomlinson - Minister of State (Department for Energy Security and Net Zero)
There are no specific claim processes designed for individual health conditions such as Parkinson’s Disease. This is because PIP claims are assessed on the basis of individual functional need rather than health condition. We actively manage and review our PIP claim processes to ensure claims are assessed and paid as quickly and accurately as possible. Normal rules new claims are currently being dealt with in an average of 14 weeks from registration to initial decision. There is also a fast-track process for any claimants with a terminal illness.
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people in Sutton Coldfield constituency received cold weather payments in the winter period of 2017-18.
Answered by Will Quince
The Cold Weather Payment scheme is administered at weather station level rather than any other standard GB geography such as constituency level. The coverage area for each weather station is determined by the Met Office which assesses the most appropriate weather station for each postcode area. Cold weather payments are triggered when the average temperature recorded at the weather station has been recorded as, or is forecast to be, 0oC or below over seven consecutive days, during the Cold Weather season (November to March).
The constituency of Sutton Coldfield covers all or part of the following postcode areas: B4, B6, B23, B42, B44, B72-76.
The above postcode areas are covered by the weather station Coleshill. Coleshill weather station covers the following postcode areas, in Table 1, which include constituencies other than Sutton Coldfield.
Table 1 Postcode sectors mapped to Weather Stations | |
Weather station | Postcode Sectors Covered |
Coleshill | B1-21, B23-38, B40, B42-50, B60-80, B90-98, CV1-12, CV21-23, CV31-35, CV37, CV47, DY1-14, LE10, WS1-15, WV1-16. |
Qualifying individuals living in these postcode sectors will have received a payment in respect of a seven-day period of Cold Weather.
We estimate that 289,000 payments were made in this area as a whole, in respect of one trigger in 2017/18. We are not able to break this figure down to a lower level.
Notes
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/social-fund-cold-weather-payments
Asked by: Andrew Mitchell (Conservative - Sutton Coldfield)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps she is taking to celebrate the achievements of people with learning disabilities and autism (a) in employment and (b) outside of employment.
Answered by Sarah Newton
We are working to celebrate the achievements of people with learning disabilities and autism through our support for events such as last year’s Autism Exchange event ‘Unlocking Potential: Autism and Employability’, which was hosted in Whitehall; the Speaking Out Forum, which supported young people with learning difficulties to learn and demonstrate valuable public speaking skills; and autism-related events with a range of stakeholders such as the Camden Society and National Grid.
Improving Lives: the Future of Work, Health and Disability, published in 2017, sets out the Government’s strategy for helping people with disabilities or health conditions enter and remain in employment, and includes case studies highlighting the achievements of people on the autism spectrum and with learning disabilities. Through the Disability Confident scheme we are working to encourage employers to employ disabled people, including those with a learning disability or autism. There are currently over 10,000 employers signed up to Disability Confident.
We are currently delivering the Local Supported Employment proof of concept in partnership with nine Local Authorities. This initiative aims to provide people with learning disabilities and autism, who are known to adult social care, with personalised ongoing support to find and sustain employment.