Welcome to the March edition of in touch

Each month, in touch keeps you up to date with the latest news from Jobcentre Plus.

This edition includes the results of our recent Customer Satisfaction survey, and news on how we're working in partnership with employers to help them realise the untapped potential of our priority customers.  There's some important information on improved support available for lone parents, and planned changes to benefit eligibility.

Also, don't miss the opportunity to join up with Jobcentre Plus in our new Community 5000 programme.

If you have a suggestion for a future edition, or any feedback, please let us know.

Latest news

Jobcentre Plus Customer Satisfaction Survey 2007

Last Summer over 4000 Jobcentre Plus customers were interviewed as part of the 2007 Customer Satisfaction Survey. Results were encouraging:

• 80 per cent of customers are satisfied with the customer service standards delivered by Jobcentre Plus
• One in five customers think that the standards have improved over the last year
• Lone parents and customers from non-white ethnic groups are more likely than average to have perceived an improvement in the quality of service
• Nearly 90 per cent of customers who have face-to-face interviews with staff are satisfied with the service received
• 92 per cent of customers thought they were treated in a polite and friendly way on their last contact with Jobcentre Plus staff

The full Customer Satisfaction report, published on 4 March, is available online at the DWP website.

The results of the report reflect the progress made in improving Jobcentre Plus customer service. Management information shows that over 90 per cent of customer telephone calls are now answered first time. Jobcentre Plus is also piloting new ways of helping its more vulnerable customers to access its services quickly and easily.

Local Employment Partnerships begin to deliver

Some 3000 people most at a disadvantage in the labour market have already found work with more than 90 employers through Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs). Over 500 employers have committed to LEPs so far and more than half are already putting their agreements into practice, helping to realise the untapped potential of people who have in the past been overlooked in the job market. Find out the latest news on LEPs.

Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform, Stephen Timms, recently launched the first annual National LEP Awards, which will celebrate the successes and innovations of employers, employees and partners involved in LEPs. Winners are to be announced at The Oval in London on 1 July. Find out more about the award categories and criteria.

Stakeholder news

New Local Area Agreements

Jobcentre Plus has welcomed the new three-year Local Area Agreements (LAAs) in England, which replace the multiple national performance frameworks that local authorities and others had previously worked to in order to set the priorities for their areas.

LAAs mean more devolved decision-making about local priorities, as well as simplifying some elements of central government funding and driving forward a more 'joined up', flexible and efficient approach to the provision of local public services.

As the LAA go-live date of 1 June approaches, Government Offices around England have been working with local authorities and their partners to agree LAAs.

One of the most significant changes is the introduction of a new statutory 'Duty to Co-operate', which requires Local Authorities and named 'partner authorities' (such as Jobcentre Plus and the NHS) to work together to develop Local Improvement targets for the new agreements.

In addition, the 'Duty to Have Regard' reinforces the commitment that partner authorities make to support the achievement of all Local Improvement targets that they have formally signed up to, including those that may not relate directly to their business.

Jobcentre Plus is determined to meet fully these new duties and to be an active partner within LAAs.  Find out more about LAAs online.

Employers Conference unlocks potential

Employers and key partners from across the country attended the Government's Conference on 28 January, which launched Ready to Work, Skilled for Work: Unlocking Britain's Talent.

The publication sets out the Government's offer to employers to work together to help people off benefits and give them the skills they need to make the most of their potential. It promises to:

• provide an effective vacancy filling system
• provide expert support for employers to invest in the skills of their workforce and
• make it easier for employers to have their own in house training accredited.

In return employers are asked to:

• commit to investing in the skills of their workforce;
• open up their job opportunities to a wider pool of potential talent; and
• give work trials to those who would benefit most.

Jobcentre Plus' Local Employment Partnerships are a key means to achieving this.

Find out more about the conference and its aims or learn more about Local Employment Partnerships.

Value of Learning Campaign

March is a crucial month for Further Education (FE) providers, as enquiries for courses starting in September begin to come in. Therefore the Learning and Skills Council will be launching another phase of its already successful Value of Learning campaign to accompany this surge in interest.

The England only campaign will run adverts on regional radio and in the national press until 16 March, and will be accompanied by a campaign toolkit for FE providers to support their marketing operations. This is available from the Campaign Resources site, and includes imagery, a copy of the press ad, Q & As, killer facts, a template press release and more.

For more information visit the campaign site, call the Skills Stakeholder helpline on 0207 413 3400 or email skillscampaign@lsc.gov.uk.

Community 5000 – helping us help you

DWP wants to know more about its customers and is committed to learning how we might serve them better. We also want to make a real difference on behalf of charities and voluntary groups.

Following the great success of a similar programme in the Disability and Carers Service last year, DWP has developed Community 5000 to provide more volunteering experiences for staff. In support of this initiative, Jobcentre Plus has pledged to give around 3000 days by July 2008 to local community organisations who have close links with our customers. We also intend to continue with the initiative in subsequent years.

We're looking to build links with community partners that we can help support through this scheme. If you think your organisation might benefit, we'd like to hear from you.

We can offer you:

• volunteer time
• shared skills
• a fresh perspective and new ideas.

In return we will gain:

• a real insight into the lives of our customers and the communities we serve
• an opportunity for relevant personal development
• an opportunity to undertake a positive and morale-boosting challenge.

We also hope that providing staff with an insight into volunteering will act as a catalyst for continuing involvement in their community.  For further information or to register your interest email Sue Bell.

Customer news
A round up of information of interest to those advising customers

Changes for lone parents

About half of the 2.8 million children living in poverty in the UK come from workless families, with the majority of these in lone parent families. By getting parents into work, and helping them stay in work, we can improve children's lives.

From April, lone parents will be able to get more advisory and financial help from Jobcentre Plus. New services include:

• Options and Choices events - group sessions that lone parents can volunteer to attend to find out about our new support and the changes ahead (find out more about these changes below).
• Guaranteed Job Interviews –where possible, a job interview for every lone parent ready for work.
• National extension of In Work Credit – up to £2080 (or £3120 in London) for lone parents in their first year back in work.
• Upfront Childcare Costs – a pilot in London to help pay for registration fees, deposits and advance payments.
• In Work Adviser Support – monthly contact with an adviser for the first 26 weeks of being back in work.
• In Work Emergency Discretion Fund – to help lone parents starting work deal with unexpected expenses that might lead to them leaving their new job.

Lone parents with older children already benefit from regular contact with an adviser. From April, lone parents with a youngest child aged up to four will start having six monthly work-focused interviews, as will partners of parents claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance.

The Childcare Act comes into effect in April for England and Wales, meaning Local Authorities will have a duty to provide sufficient childcare to meet demand.

Find out more about the changes online.

Changes to Income Support

In December, Jobcentre Plus set out its intention to make changes to the benefits lone parents can receive. From October 2008 a lone parent whose youngest child is aged 12 or over will no longer be entitled to receive Income Support solely on the grounds that he or she is a lone parent. Over time this will be extended to those whose youngest child is aged 10 or over (from October 2009) and aged seven or over (from October 2010).

Jobcentre Plus Advisers will discuss lone parents' options with them in the run up to the change, which could include work, claiming Jobseeker's Allowance, or claiming Employment and Support Allowance if they have a health condition or disability. These changes require legislative amendments and are subject to consideration by the Social Security Advisory Committee.

Local Housing Allowance roll-out

We're now just a few weeks away from the national roll-out of the Local Housing Allowance (LHA) – the new way of working out Housing Benefit for people renting their homes from private sector landlords. The LHA will be introduced for new claims to Housing Benefit from 7 April 2008, and is fairer, more transparent and promotes greater financial responsibility.

But the LHA won't apply to all customers immediately. It will be rolled out gradually to those making new claims for benefit or changing address. Find out more about LHA online or email lhaadviceline@dwp.gsi.gov.uk

New Job Kit available to Jobseeker’s Allowance customers

A new Job Kit to help customers with their job-hunting is now available and is being promoted in a national Jobsearch campaign.

The Job Kit - a folder with a series of fact sheets - aims to get customers to think more widely about their job-hunting and supports them by offering advice on finding jobs, applying for jobs, going to interviews and starting work. 

During testing in Norfolk, the Job Kit was well received by partners, staff and customers and is eagerly anticipated by Jobcentre Plus advisers working with unemployed people.  It will be available more widely in the near future as a download from the Jobcentre Plus website.

The national Jobcentre Plus Jobsearch campaign launched in February 2008, and includes direct mail to all Jobseeker's Allowance customers between 18 and 49 years old who have been unemployed for more than six months. Customers over 50 years old are being targeted through a separate campaign that runs in parallel.

About in touch  

in touch aims to provide you with short summaries of the latest news, progress of our modernisation programme, forthcoming changes to benefit rules, updates on performance, as well as news on important policy issues which affect our shared customers. in touch complements Touchbase, the quarterly publication from DWP, by providing a monthly focus on Jobcentre Plus related issues.

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