Meeting documents

The Executive
Tuesday, 19 April 2005

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ITEM EX19 - ANNEX 1

EXECUTIVE – 19 APRIL 2005

PARTNERSHIP ACCORD WITH JOBCENTRE PLUS

Report by Head of Human Resources

 

"HELPING THE HARDEST TO REACH INTO WORK"

Partnership Accord between the Department for Work and Pensions, Jobcentre Plus and the Local Government Association

"We the undersigned agree that our organisations will work together in partnership with others to increase employment rates (especially among disadvantaged groups and areas), reduce poverty, and encourage social inclusion through the use of innovative and flexible approaches and collaborative working at a local level."

The Rt Hon Nick Brown MP, Minister of State for Work

Clare Dodgson, Acting Chief Executive, Jobcentre Plus

Cllr David Sparks, Chair, Economic Regeneration Executive, Local Government Association

Purpose

1. This Accord sets out the basis for improved collaborative working at a local level between the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), Jobcentre Plus, and local authorities. It builds on joint work undertaken by the Local Government Association (LGA), the Department for Work and Pensions, and Jobcentre Plus officials to take forward the shared priority of 'helping the hardest to reach into work'.

Background

2. Despite a reduction in registered unemployment, economic activity remains a challenge for many local communities and the UK economy as a whole. New Deal has been an important and successful national programme to tackle these issues alongside other locally targeted initiatives such as Action Teams, Neighbourhood Renewal, and New Deal for Communities.

3. Central and local government have agreed that one of their shared priorities is 'promoting the economic vitality of localities by providing positive conditions for growth and employment, improving adult skills and helping the hardest to reach into work'. There is now considerable evidence and experience of the benefits that can accrue by customising welfare to work interventions to suit local circumstances.

4. Collaboration at a local level between local authorities and Jobcentre Plus has generated innovation, flexibility and expertise in improving the labour market opportunities of the most disadvantaged. Local Public Service Agreements have demonstrated this approach and local authorities and their partners have used their own funds together with other funding streams to achieve similar ends.

5. The Partnership Accord acknowledges the importance of local authorities and Jobcentre Plus working together and with others to increase employment rates and remove barriers to work. It recognises the practical contribution that local authorities can make through local strategic partnerships, through offering vacancies to Jobcentre Plus clients, their efficient administration of Housing Benefit and their sponsorship of economic regeneration, training and employment initiatives.

6. It also seeks to build on existing examples of effective joint working between local government and Jobcentre Plus - as exemplified by the 'hardest to reach' pathfinder authorities and latterly, the 'removing barriers to work' Beacon Councils. The Accord encourages further cooperation that leads to flexible and innovative ways of improving employment outcomes, particularly for the most disadvantaged groups and areas.

Principles

7. This Accord is based on the need to:

    • focus on the customer and commit to provide quality services, deliver robust outcomes, and give value for money;

    • concentrate on helping the most disadvantaged people from the most disadvantaged areas;

    • ensure equality of access and opportunity for people from diverse backgrounds;

    • work to make a success of Local Strategic Partnerships in their development of employment strategies;

    • support delivery of the National Strategy for Neighbourhood Renewal and other regeneration objectives;

    • support local collaboration and commit to develop flexible locally tailored solutions that meet local needs;

    • work towards the development and dissemination of models of best practice in tackling worklessness;

    • ensure that realistic and achievable local targets are supported by relevant funding and resources;

    • evaluate partnership activity and show measured benefits and outcomes;

    • provide advice and information at a national level to clarify planning, funding and contracting opportunities, and good practice;

    • gain the commitment of local authorities to maximise their use of Jobcentre Plus in helping to fill job vacancies;

    • improve Housing Benefit administration as a positive contribution to placing people into work.

Objectives

8. The objectives of this Accord are to:

    • demonstrate that an effective multi-agency approach can contribute to economic prosperity and the well being of workless people;

    • promote opportunities to use funding and programmes in a flexible way according to local circumstances;

    • stimulate joint working, intelligence sharing, strategy development, joint design and delivery of employment initiatives at a local level;

    • raise awareness of the scope for high performing local authorities to innovate;

    • enable greater coherence in strategic planning at a national level to reduce unnecessary initiative and programme proliferation;

    • develop ways of promoting good practice in line with the criteria for the Beacon Council theme 'Removing Barriers to Work';

    • raise the quality and effectiveness of learning experiences for all customers of local welfare to work provision as reflected in Adult Learning Inspectorate reports;

    • share opportunities for adopting flexible local approaches to increasing employment rates as negotiated through the Local Public Service Agreement process;

    • acknowledge the importance of the public sector as an employer in its own right.

Joint commitments

9. The Accord is underpinned by the following joint commitments. DWP, Jobcentre Plus and the LGA will encourage local authorities and local Jobcentre Plus offices to:

    • work together on the effective use of local labour market intelligence;

    • develop strategies with partners and stakeholders to increase employment rates and skill levels - particularly for the most disadvantaged;

    • ensure that strategies show strong links with community and neighbourhood renewal plans;

    • maximise the opportunities for Jobcentre Plus customers to get jobs with local authorities by making Jobcentre Plus the recruitment partner of choice;

    • tackle barriers to employment through innovative and flexible approaches - maximising local discretion;

    • collaborate effectively on the improvement of Housing Benefit administration and local benefits advice to provide a seamless service to clients.

Outcomes

10. These commitments are designed to achieve:

    • increased employment rates and sustainability, especially among the hardest to reach groups especially lone parents, the over 50s, people with disabilities, ethnic minorities, and people lacking qualifications;

    • wider opportunities for Jobcentre Plus customers to work in local authorities and the wider public sector;

    • improved benefit take-up rates (including in work benefits);

    • reduction in the number of workless households;

    • reduction in local manifestations of poverty;

    • closer collaboration at a local level.

Next steps

11. The LGA, DWP and Jobcentre Plus will jointly develop an action plan to take this Accord forward, including:

    • promoting good examples of joint working at a strategic and operational level between local authorities and Jobcentre Plus District Offices to help workless people into work;

    • gaining the commitment of local authorities to make Jobcentre Plus their recruitment partner of choice;

    • developing a 'Routeway' for workless people to gain experience and training in public sector employment and piloting this approach locally;

    • sharing lessons from local authorities that have negotiated Local PSA targets and increased flexibilities on employment;

    • working with the Neighbourhood Renewal Unit and Learning and Skills Council to improve the quality of local neighbourhood renewal strategies in relation to employment and skills action at a Local Strategic Partnership Level.

Review

12. The DWP, Jobcentre Plus, and LGA, will jointly establish a national working group to take forward the above action, review and evaluate the operation of this Accord. This working group will meet quarterly.

13 May 2003

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