Aim: People Maximise Their Income Through Benefit Take Up

Newcastle’s FinancialInclusion Plan

This plan outlines Newcastle’s approach to increasing financial inclusion.It aligns the work of a range of partners to reduce duplication and target capacity to meet our shared priorities. This plan is about making the best of ourresources to make the most difference to people whose lives will be improved by becoming financially included. Our aim is to proactively help people to cope with life changing moments.

This is a living document, actions and information will be reviewed and updated on a regular basis. This plan will be supplemented by briefings that explain what support we are offering and the difference it makes. There will also be a performance report that will show the difference we are making and provide explanations of variations.

What is financial inclusion?

Financial Inclusion is aboutmaking sure everyone has access to appropriate financial services and the skills and confidence to use them to improve their lives.

Financial exclusion is caused by a number of interlinked factors predominantly relating to poverty and deprivation. Financial exclusion compounds poverty and social exclusion. Being financially excluded can have a significant impact on people’s lives. It could mean that some people find it difficult to plan for the future and cope with crises such as long term sickness, unemployment or family breakdown. Financial problems can lead to stress, depression and time off work. A lack of affordable credit can lead to people becoming victims of illegal loan sharks. According to Relate, relationships are most likely to breakdown over money problems.

What does financial inclusion mean in Newcastle?

Financial inclusion is an important element in tackling poverty and facilitating social justice. Our aim is to make a measurable difference to financially excluded people. This plan outlines how we will help people to be aware of and have access to advice and services that:

they can trust and turn to when they face financial hardship
maximise income through benefit take up
provide affordable credit
provide access to a basic bank account
reduce unnecessary debt related expenditure
reduce fuel costs
help people access affordable insurance
provide opportunities to save
help people feel in control of their finances and future

Achieving financial inclusion is at the heart of our commitment to tackle many of the inequalities present within Newcastle. We have information about the extent and location of deprivation in the city. We do not know as much as we’d like to about people who are finically excluded. Part of what we aim to do is increase our understanding of financial exclusion.

How we will increase financial inclusion

In Newcastle there areseveral agencies (see appendix 1) working to promote financial inclusion. To coordinate this work the Council established amulti-agencyFinancial Inclusion Group (FIG). The FIG provides partners with the opportunity to see what other work is going-on and to partake in joint campaigns. Our aim is to develop a simplified and consistent offer for people in Newcastle. We want to make the most of our resources to help people where and when they need it most. We know that the financiallyexcluded are vulnerable to aggressive marketing and that people find it difficult to know who to trust. The Council wants to promote trust with those in need. We want an honest dialogue withpeoplethat helps them to meet their rights and responsibilities and to realise their aspirations.

The FIG is chaired by the Deputy Leader of the Council, Councillor Joyce McCarty and meets quarterly to:

develop a city wide consensus about how we can best use our resources to promote financial inclusion
give an overview of the financial inclusion work in the city
improve our understanding of financial inclusion
reduce the duplication and improve the targeting of resources
develop a culture of using our resources to make a measurable difference
explore ways to tackle a key issue in a coordinated approach across the city e.g. fuel poverty, illegal money lending
provide opportunities to develop partnerships

The FIG is supported by the Newcastle Advice Compact (NAC) and the Newcastle Debt Compact (NDC)who meet more frequently to develop specific work programmes aimed at maximising incomes and reducing debt and preventing homelessness. These compatcs act as the operational delivery groups of the advice and debt related aspects of the FIG.

Further information

For more information about financial inclusion, please contact:

Neil Munslow, Housing and Welfare Services Manager

Phone: 0191 211 6351

Clare Fish, Policy and Information Officer

Phone: 0191 277 7529

Aim: People maximise their income through benefit take up
Theme lead: Rosemary Bell
Why is this important?
The rising cost of living, the impact of welfare reform and a large under claim of benefits, means that it is more important for people to claim all of the benefits that they are entitled to. Maximising income through benefit take up not only helps to boost income for vulnerable households, but also helps to benefit the local economy by increasing the amount of money available to be spent in the local area.
What do we know:

Eligibility for Free School Meals in Newcastle is higher than the national average, but a significant number of children and young people are not taking up their meals.
Some family types, such as those with a disabled family member, are at greater risk of financial hardship. This is caused by a combination of restrictions on their ability to work and increased expenditure as a result of their circumstances.
The 2010 Index of Multiple Deprivation has ranked Newcastle as the 40th most deprived district in the UK with 43 of its 173 areas falling into the 10% most deprived nationally.
A quarter of Newcastle’s population live in the country’s most deprived areas. These are mainly located in Byker, Walker and Walkergate in the east, and Elswick, Benwelland Scotswood in the west with pockets of deprivation in the outer west and north of the city

What have we done so farand what has worked well:

In 2010, the Newcastle Advice Compact members generated just under £27 million in annualised benefit gains
During 2010/11 Newcastle Welfare Rights saw 9,706 people for help and advice relating to benefit or council tax issues,benefit gains were up by 34% ( £5.25 million) to £17.5 million
Newcastle Advice Compact have introduced reporting mechanisms to capture financial gains across the city
We have undertaken a city wide publicity campaign to encourage benefit take up. This has included adverts at bus stops, refuse wagons and information in the Chronicle and City Life.

We haveincluded messages on pay slips for Newcastle City Council and NewcastleUniversity staff to encourage staff to claim benefits they may be entitled to.
We have used housing benefit data to promote Attendance Allowance take up for the over 85’s. This has generated over £410,000 in benefit gains.
We have worked with Warmzone to target older carers, this resulted in benefit gains of £58,647
We have used housing benefit data to contact families who may be entitled to free school meals
Newcastle Welfare Rights Service helped 372 people claim Tax Credits, this resulted in £2,332,471 annualised gains

Our identified actions are :
Action: / What is the data telling us?
Are there gaps in the data? / What will we do? / What are the key milestones in achieving this action? / How will we measure progress?
Work with organisations to tackle barriers associated with benefit take up, for example free school meals / The proportion of children and young people registered for free School Meals in Newcastle has fallen from 28.7% in 2005 to 25.2% in 2010, but is still well above the national rate of 17.4%.
A recent data matching exercise revealed that up to 2,000 children living in Newcastle may meet the criteria for free school meals but are not claiming them. / We will carry out a data matching exercise to help identify families who may be entitled to free school meals and are not in receipt of this.
We will continue to build links with the Child Poverty Network to ensure they are aware of work being undertaken around financial inclusion and identify potential areas for joint working. / A further data run is planned for October / November 2011
This is an ongoing action / The number of families registering for free school meals. (available quarterly)
(Although it is recognised that there may be a number of reasons why a parent or carer may choose not to take up, which will impact on this performance measure).
Develop the work of the Newcastle Advice Compact to encourage benefit take up for low income families living in Newcastle / We do not hold information on the number of low income families living in Newcastle who are entitled to benefits but do not claim them.
We know that many benefits go unclaimed. Government have estimated that national take up rates as being:
Council Tax and Housing Benefit – between 77% and 86%
Pension Credit – between 62% and 73%
Income Support and Income- related Employment and Support Allowance – between 78% and 88% / We will continue to share intelligence and develop joint campaigns with the Newcastle Advice Compact to encourage benefit take up.
Targeted action will depend on available resources. This action plan will be updated to reflect such work. / This is an ongoing action / Relevant performance indicators used by Newcastle Advice Compact:
Number of families receiving financial gains from Newcastle Welfare Rights Service (available quarterly)
Department for Work and Pensions:
Proportion of children living in poverty (available annually).
Work with the Newcastle Advice Compact to encourage people to appeal against benefit or council tax decisions if refused / We do not hold information to show the number of people living in Newcastle who have been refused benefits administered by central Government. Data from revenues and benefits suggests that during 2010/11, 1,573 claims were made defective because of a lack of evidence provided or because the claimant’s circumstances meant they were not in the scope of housing benefit or council tax benefit schemes. / We will continue to share intelligence and develop joint campaigns to encourage people to appeal against decisions if refused. / This is an ongoing action / Newcastle Advice Compact performance indicators:
Number of appeals subjects opened by Newcastle Welfare Rights Service
Work with the Newcastle Advice Compact to advertise the availability of in work benefits, particularly help with child care costs / We do not have information at a local level about the number of families entitled to in work benefits.
Ccentral government shows that as of April 2011, 28,000 families living in Newcastlereceived tax credits. / We will work with the Childcare Sustainability Board to publicise the availability of tax credits. / This is an ongoing action / Department for Work and Pensions:
Number of families living in Newcastle who are in receipt of tax credits
Continue to offer benefit checks through members of the Newcastle Advice Compact
Continue to identify groups missing out on benefits due to changes in benefit legislation. / There is an opportunity to work with Adults and Culture Services and Children’s Services to embed automatic referrals and stop people from falling through the gaps. / We will continue to work with officers in Adult and Culture Services and Children’s Services to increase the number of automated referrals received
We will link into work currently being undertaken by the Child Poverty Network to develop a first contact sheet / This is an ongoing action
Work has begun to develop a first contact sheet to be used by people who regularly come into contact with vulnerable people. / Performance will be measured by:
Number of automatic referrals received
Increase access to income maximisation services through Customer Service Centres
This is a joint action to raise awareness of services in Newcastle / We do not have data available advising of the number of referrals received by Customer Service Centres at present. / Further discussions will take place between Customer Service Centres. As part of this we will look at ways of monitoring customer referral numbers.
We will link into work currently being undertaken by the Child Poverty Network to develop a first contact sheet
We will also develop a Financial Inclusion guide to be used by staff in Customer Service Centres and libraries / Discussions to take place by January 2012 / Performance will be measured by:
Number of referrals received by Customer Service Centres and libraries.
Work with the Newcastle Advice Compact to promote ‘better off’ calculations and the different help and advice available for people moving from benefits to paid employment / We do not have information on the number of better off calculations offered by the Newcastle Advice Compact.
In 2010, the Newcastle Advice Compact members generated just under £27 million in annualised benefit gains / We are working with partners to submit an initial bid for Big Lottery funding to enable social tenants in Newcastle to get jobs, stay in work and manage finances efficiently and confidently to maintain tenancies and stay out of debt.
We will work with partners to promote the services offered by Newcastle Futures and other partners offering better off calculations. / We will find out in November if our bid outline has passed the initial stage.
This is an ongoing action / Robust performance measures will be developed as the bid progresses.
Number of better off calculations delivered by organisations
Aim: People are engaged in paid employment and have relevant skills for the job market
Theme lead: Lorraine O’Dea
Why is this important?
Unemployment and worklessness remain a significant problem in Newcastle. Nearly 30,000 residents, or 15% of the working age population, receive out-of work benefits. This has a significant detrimental impact on individuals, families and communities. Unemployment has been linked to a number of wider social problems, including child poverty, poor physical and mental health, crime and disorder, and early pregnancies. Reducing unemployment is a priority for the Council. Particular consideration is required for vulnerable young people, including those with disabilities or mental health conditions, who face additional challenges when seeking employment. Having a decent job makes an important contribution to social inclusion, good health and wellbeing and therefore in reducing the need for formal social care and health services.
We are seeing growth in a number of sectors of the economy which offer skilled employment; including in marine and offshore engineering, low carbon industries, health, education, business and professional services, tourism and leisure, and in science. These sources of new job growth will demand higher levels of skills. This is in line with the established trend in all developed economies towards a higher skill-intensity in the jobs market, due largely to competition from lower costs centres of production like China, India and Latin America. It will make it harder for people without skills to look forward to a successful working life. A sustained investment in skills and education will ensure that more people are able to secure well paid jobs in new and growing sectors of the economy.
While more young people in Newcastle are staying in learning beyond the age of 16, a far lower proportion of young people from the most deprived parts of the city progress into high education, and the gap seems to be widening. It will therefore be important to ensure that the aspirations of all young people can be met, and that the changes we are seeing to the system of student finance do not deter young people from the most deprived areas. The Council will also want to ensure that the programmes which both our two universities are putting into place to widen participation are particularly active within our own school community.
What do we know:

In August 2011, 4.5% of working age people in Newcastle were in receipt of Job Seekers Allowance (JSA).
In August 2011 there were 4.8 JSA claimants per unfilled jobcentre vacancy.
The Annual Population Survey (2010) indicates that 12.5% of the population had no qualifications and 28.0% had NVQ4 and above (e.g. HND, Degree).
The Annual Population Survey (2010) indicates that the unemployment rate for 16-19 year olds is 24.6%.
In November 2010, 891 young people (aged 16-18) were NEET (not in education, employment or training).
Our young people are achieving better educational qualifications than ever before, with 49.5% of 16 year olds gaining 5 or more A*-Cs including English and Maths at GCSE. The gap with the national average has narrowed, and Newcastle is now above the national average for young people achieving 5 or more A*-Cs at GCSE.
The proportion of pupils achieving an A*-C grade at GCSE in maths, science or technology subjects has improved by 24.3 % in the last 5 years, from 46.9% in 2006 to 71.2% in 2010. On this measure, the city has moved from below to above the national average.
Young people are more likely to be NEET if they are care leavers, have learning difficulties or disabilities, are young offenders, are teenage mothers, or live in the most deprived parts of Newcastle.

What have we done so far and what has worked well: