Projects

Universal Credit will provide a new single system of means-tested support for working-age people who are in or out of work. It will also change the way that self employed people are supported by the benefits system since it will require i) monthly self reporting of income, and ii) self employed claimants to attend gateway interviews to evidence their self employment. The purpose of this research was to develop an understanding of current self-employed tax credit claimants to support the development of the process and policy for self employed people under Universal Credit. It examined the ability of self-employed claimants to evidence their earnings and the genuineness of their self employment. It also investigated how respondents reacted to the policy, including how it would affect their behaviour and circumstances.

Jobcentre Plus (the UK public employment service) commissioned this research to establish whether and to what extent staff across the organisation understand and feel adequately supported to undertake the legislative requirements of the public sector equality duties to prevent discrimination and promote positive attitudes towards customers and staff from different demographic groups. The project involved interviews with around 80 staff in a variety of roles across JobCentre Plus. Its findings were to be used to inform improvements to existing processes, learning and development approaches, staff guidance, products and training.

IES was commissioned by the Department for Work and Pensions to evaluate the London City Strategy Pilot for English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL). This was designed to demonstrate how work-focused ESOL provision can support access to sustainable employment and progress in work for Jobcentre Plus customers who speak English as an additional language. The Pilot ran for two years in the East and West London City Strategy Pathfinder (CSP) areas, and was targeted at parents who are in receipt of benefits or tax credits.

The policy intent of POEM was to improve the economic activity of its target groups: Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Somali women, by addressing their barriers to work, including cultural barriers, confidence, knowledge of labour market options and jobsearch and interview skills. In practice, a far wider range of eligible clients are on POEM: almost half are men, and while Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Black African clients are the largest groups on the programme, it is actually open to people of any ethnicity, and has been operating as such. It is being delivered by 10 private sector providers in six cities in England – the main challenge for them has been finding eligible clients through outreach and referrals from suitable community partners. In a mainly qualitative evaluation of this voluntary programme for the Department of Work and Pensions, IES is undertaking case study work with all providers, interviewing clients, and analysing the management information returned by all providers to DWP.

The Department of Work and Pensions (DWP), Jobcentre Plus, the Department of Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) were working together to develop a new integrated employment and skills system to diagnose the skills needs of people seeking work, and ensure they receive relevant training, not just while they remain unemployed but once they get into work as well. The new system (which goes by the familiar acronym of IES) was being trialled in a number of Jobcentre Plus areas over the year. The Institute was commissioned by the DWP to evaluate the trials, and to develop a comprehensive evaluation strategy for the rollout of the new system.

DWP undertook a Pilot to ascertain whether Children’s Centres might offer a more effective vehicle to engage parents in labour market related activity, and so move them closer to employment (and ultimately into work). The pilot operated from late 2008 to March 2011, in 30 Children’s Centres across 10 Local Authority areas. The purpose of the evaluation was to assess the impact of embedding full-time personal advisers in children centres on parents’ take-up of work-focused services, and on their broader views and attitudes towards seeking employment, and to explore the development of partnership working in those centres that have benefitted from an adviser. It consisted of a 2-wave survey, together with area case studies, and qualitative longitudinal research with parents using the centres.

The Access to Work (AtW) programme has been operating in Great Britain since 1994 and is designed for people with long-term health conditions or impairments who need practical support to take up work or to do their job. This project is a qualitative evaluation of AtW provision, involving customers, employers and a range of other stakeholders. The evaluation consists of three strands: an evaluation of AtW; an exploration of the effects of the decision that ministerial government departments should pay for their own adjustments; and a consideration of employment support within individual budget pilot areas.

The City Strategy is an innovative strategy aimed at addressing the problem of persistently high levels of worklessness found in certain areas. Local consortia made up of public, private and voluntary organisations in 15 areas throughout England, Scotland and Wales were created to bring local knowledge to bear on the problem and provide new ideas for potential use elsewhere. A key aspect of the City Strategy is that it seeks to empower local institutions to develop local solutions. It is envisaged that such an approach will give local stakeholders the freedom to innovate, and the flexibility to work together to combine and align their efforts behind shared priorities. Each City Strategy Pathfinder (CSP) undertook its own local evaluation. IES was commissioned as an Area Evaluation Adviser to three of the fifteen CSPs. The aim of this role was to ensure that the CSP local evaluations were undertaken effectively and that they contributed towards the national evaluation of the CSPs, which was carried out by the Institute for Employment Research (IER) at University of Warwick.