Appendix 2

Review of

Local Employment Initiatives

Executive Summary

SHARED INTELLIGENCE
Tower House
Fishergate
York
YO10 4UA
01904 567381

April 2005

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Review of Local Employment Initiatives

Shared Intelligence was commissioned to undertake a review of local employment initiatives on behalf of Middlesbrough Council, working with a range of partners including the SRB Partnership, Jobcentre Plus, West Middlesbrough Neighbourhood Trust and the Learning and Skills Council Tees Valley.

The review is set in the context of an increasing policy focus onworklessness. This is a broad measure of economic inactivity which encompasses not just those on Job Seekers Allowance but people of working age on a much wider range of state benefits.

The Department of Work and Pensions recently published its five year strategy which proposes changes to the Incapacity Benefits system, increased local flexibility for Jobcentre Plus and a strong focus on partnership working to help people re-enter the labour market. At regional level, the Northern Way, which highlights the pivotal role of increased employment rates in narrowing the ‘productivity gap’ between the North and South East

Objectives

The objectives of the review were to:

  • assess current and future employment needs – addressing both supply and demand-side issues;
  • scan current/future policy and delivery at national, regional and local level;
  • identify a ‘preferred model’ of provision for supporting access to the labour market and reducing worklessness;
  • evaluate current provision and identify gaps/areas for enhancement/opportunities; and
  • develop a strategy/action plan and business case to take forward new programmes/projects in Middlesbrough.

Methodology

The methodology for the review was based on three stages:

  • Stage One: an assessment of need and overview of current provision
  • Stage Two: development and testing of a new model of employment support
  • Stage Three: forward strategy and action plan

Where are we now?

Jobs and Enterprise in Deprived Areas, a 2004 report from the Social Exclusion Unitcast sharp light on Middlesbrough as possessing one of the worst concentrations of worklessness in England. The socio-economic characteristics of the area paint a particularly challenging picture:

  • a declining population – the 17-44 age group is projected to decline by 11% to 2016
  • a higher than average representation of lone parents and other excluded groups
  • an economy which is growing slowly, driven by the service sector, where the public sector continues to be the dominant employer and there are above average levels of part-time employment
  • continued skills shortages in some sectors of the Tees Valley and Middlesbrough economies which threaten to constrain economic growth, most notably in health and social care, construction, hospitality and transport.
  • lower than average rates of economic activity and employment (63.5% cf 74.3% for GB as a whole)
  • high rates of unemployment (4.6% January 05, cf GB 2.4%) despite 35% fall in JSA claimants since 2001; 45% of claimants are long-term unemployed
  • 22.4% of the working age population are on benefits of some form (GB 13.5%); there are just over 20,000 residents on Incapacity Benefit and Income Support and the claimant count has remained almost static in recent years; more than 50% of those in receipt of IB/IS have been claiming for more than a year
  • 16 of Middlesbrough’s 22 wards are in the worst 20% of wards in England for employment deprivation.

A view from the sharp end

The research involved interviews with 50 individuals from groups at particular risk of worklessness, including young people, lone parents, the long-term unemployed, BME residents and asylum seekers/refugees and people with disabilities. The research considered their current need for support, barriers to the labour market and aspirations for the future.

All of the consultees were unemployed and/or workless and most were engaged in some form of employment support programme. The local research reinforced many of the messages emerging from national research with these groups, identifying the following barriers to work:

  • health
  • childcare
  • transport
  • housing
  • skills
  • the Benefits System
  • postcode discrimination

All of these factors impact on the self-esteem, confidence and aspirations of the unemployed and workless, some of whom represent the second generation of Middlesbrough families without work. Other, more localised barriers identified included

  • a mismatch between career aspirations and the jobs available in the local labour market; many entry level jobs are considered to be low skilled and low paid and this in itself acts as a disincentive
  • where individuals are able to access support, progression routes between different providers of employment support are often complex and the ‘customer journey’ is often unclear
  • perceived constraints on the resources of Jobcentre Plus advisors and perceptions of JC+ as the ‘benefits police’ which impact on how people engage
  • issues affecting BME residents, asylum seekers/refugees and economic migrants, including a lack of recognition of overseas qualifications by local employers.

Current provision of employment support

Our research highlights more than 50 different employment support programmes operating across Middlesbrough, ranging from New Deal and other national initiatives operated by Jobcentre Plus, national pilot programmes (Employment Zone, Action Team for Jobs, Working in Neighbourhoods) and a raft of local projects designed to meet the needs of specific client groups and localities.

Many of the most employment deprived wards in Middlesbrough are already served by a wide range of support. However this picture will change over the next year as a number of Jobcentre Plus funded programmes (e.g. Action Team for Jobs) and other funding streams come to an end.

Some aspects of the system are working well. The freedoms and flexibilities adopted by Action Team for Jobs, Employment Zone and Working in Neighbourhoods programmes were considered especially valuable in providing highly tailored support to the individual. Other programmes/projects which are valued by stakeholders and beneficiaries alike included:

  • projects which engage with hard to reach groups (e.g. Grange Road Task Force, MiLE)
  • West Middlesbrough NDC’s Job Brokerage programme – which plays a key role in supporting workless individuals not on benefits
  • Hemlington Works – which is considered to be a local exemplar of the integration of multi-agency service provision at neighbourhood level; this model, adapted to reflect local needs and facilities, could be applied in other neighbourhoods in Middlesbrough
  • Building Bureau and other projects which focus on addressing the skills shortages of particular sectors; there is potential to develop this model for other sectors including health and social care, hospitality and catering and transport.
  • ILMs – which should continue to play a key role in meeting the needs of the most disengaged groups, but with a stronger focus on specific sectors or target groups.

In other respects, the system can be improved. The review found that

  • there was some (albeit limited) evidence of duplication of provision between programmes; there Network of Intermediaries could play an important role in improving coordination of local provision
  • funding regimes do not promote/reward individual progression, but focus on achieving short-term outputs which may be unsustainable
  • few projects supported individuals during the transition into a new job, and this has an impact on their ability to sustain employment
  • there is a continued shortage of Information, Advice and Guidance advisors
  • improved links are required between Connexions and local employers to create new pathways to employment for young people.

Learning from good practice

The review benchmarked current provision in Middlesbrough against exemplar employment projects from around the UK. The benchmarking exercise sought in particular to explore how mainstream programmes have been tailored to meet local needs. The projects included:

  • Full Employment Areas (Liverpool, Renfrewshire)
  • Streets Ahead (Liverpool)
  • New Futures Fund (Careers Scotland)
  • health projects (Compass Project, Healthy Working Lives, Starting Well)
  • Strive (Harlesden) – a programme based on the US welfare to work model.

The key lessons for provision in Middlesbrough include:

  • freedoms and flexibilities around mainstream provision can play a major role in reducing barriers to employment
  • these programmes have a strong focus on engaging the hard to reach, using independent personal advisors/key workers based in the community who broker support and ‘handhold’ the individual back into employment and for their initial period of work; the Grange Road Task Force provides a local example of elements of this approach
  • successful programmes deal with the ‘person first’, tackling issues of health, family and confidence before focusing on re-entering the labour market; PCTs/GPs have a critical role to play as part of this holistic approach.

Local Employment Strategy

Part B of the review sets out a Local Employment Strategy and Action Plan.

Full employment

The Government has promoted the concept of full employment as part of its economic policies and this is the long-term aspiration for the Middlesbrough Local Employment Strategy. Full employment is centred on four key aspirations:

  • everyone who wants to work can quickly find a job
  • no groups are excluded or disadvantaged in the labour market
  • there are real prospects for progression at work
  • poverty in work is eradicated, and there is fulfilling employment for all.

Here, full employment is defined not as ‘zero unemployment’, which is unsustainable in labour market terms, but is instead measured as the GB average for JSA claimant count unemployment and an employment rate of 80% - the latter reflecting the DWP’s target.

Achieving full employment in Middlesbrough today would require 8.600 more Middlesbrough residents to be in work. The Middlesbrough economy is currently growing at around 500 jobs per annum and even when combined with economic growth elsewhere in Tees Valley, it is clear that achieving full employment is a long-term (10 year) aspiration for the Local Employment Strategy.

Objectives

The Local Employment Strategy has three core objectives:

  • to build and maintain a consensus on local needs & priorities and develop provision to address gaps
  • to provide a framework to coordinate and target delivery
  • to influence and add value to delivery of mainstream programmes

Action Plan

The Action Plan details three main areas for action by the Council, Jobcentre Plus, West Middlesbrough Neighbourhood Trust and their partners:

  • creation of new Middlesbrough-wide partnership arrangements – Middlesbrough Works to coordinate delivery of the Local Employment Strategy
  • a stronger local influence on the delivery of mainstream programmes including New Deal/Pathways to Work to increase engagement with and support for the hardest to reach groups; this includes proposals to extend flexibilities and freedoms to the 12 most employment deprived wards in Middlesbrough, in line with the DWP Strategy
  • commissioning local initiatives to plug gaps in provision, including support for long-term Incapacity Benefit/Income Support claimants and a strengthened role for the public sector in providing apprenticeships/work placements etc

Middlesbrough Works

The starting point is a new approach to partnership working around the worklessness agenda in Middlesbrough. Tackling worklessness and unemployment will require a holistic approach, encompassing a range of health, family support, welfare and education interventions as well as employment/skills support.

The proposals envisage a clear role for the Local Strategic Partnership in bringing together a stronger, focused partnership involving the Council, Jobcentre Plus, NDC, LSC, the Network of Intermediaries and other partners to deliver the Local Employment Strategy. Building on the Local Strategic Partnership’s Economic Vitality Action Group, the new partnership vehicle – provisionally known as Middlesbrough Works - would

  • clearly define delivery roles & responsibilities
  • align funding and resources; move towards joint commissioning and re-commissioning of projects
  • work with other partners (social work, health etc) to strengthen referral routes and promote progression
  • provide capacity building and support to local organisations
  • maintain overview of local needs/priorities - monitor, evaluate and update the Local Employment Strategy

Influencing mainstream provision

The proposals seek to extend the successful flexibilities and freedoms delivered on a pilot basis through the Middlesbrough Action Team for Jobs and Employment Zone to the 12 most employment-deprived wards in Middlesbrough. Operating for a period of five years, this would improve access to employment support for the hardest to reach groups in Middlesbrough through a range of measures including

  • minimum eligibility criteria to access support – beneficiaries would simply need to be unemployed or economically inactive and all individuals would access the full range of available support
  • more personal advisors to broker support, working in community settings alongside GPs and other providers to deliver holistic support
  • funding to follow the individual, rather than the provider
  • stop the clock' allowing individuals to address key barriers without penalty
  • enhanced travel subsidies and support with childcare costs
  • in-work support for a minimum of 26 weeks built into all programmes
  • rewards for effective partnership working and encouraging progression.