Welcome to the August edition of in touch

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

This edition explains how you can have your say about the recently published Welfare Reform Green Paper 'No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility'. It also includes an update on the Employment and Support Allowance during the countdown to launch day; and details of the increasing number of people finding work with the help of Local Employment Partnerships.

If you'd like to suggest a topic for a future edition, or have any feedback on in touch, please let us know.

Latest news

Employment partnerships LEP ahead

The number of people starting work through Local Employment Partnerships (LEPs) has passed the thousand per week mark - and the upward trend is continuing.

By the end of July more than 18,500 people have found work through LEPs. In that same month Jobcentre Plus put forward more than 233,000 candidates for LEP employers' vacancies, which is an increase of 250% since May.

As part of a LEP, the employer agrees to make more jobs available to long-term unemployed people, lone parents, people with health conditions and other groups often overlooked in the labour market. In return Jobcentre Plus prepares those people to match the employer's skills needs and gets them ready to enter the world of work.

Both for employers and for jobseekers, the advantages of LEPs are substantial. For inspirational evidence, take a look at the short videos about employers and employees who were shortlisted for July's 2008 national LEP Awards and find out who won.

For more information about the Award winners and LEPs in general, please visit the LEP area on this website.

In focus

Have your say on the proposed welfare reforms

The Government is seeking your views on plans to reform the welfare state, set out in the Green Paper 'No one written off: reforming welfare to reward responsibility'.

The proposals aim to simplify benefits and deliver greater and more personalised support for people in return for more responsibility.

The majority of people of working age - who can work now or at some point in the future - will no longer be on benefits for life. Most people on benefits will be required to contribute actively in return for their benefits. There will also be more personalised support provided for everyone who needs it to make sure they have the opportunity to get into work.

Your views on all the proposals are welcomed before the consultation closes on 22 October 2008. For example:

• Simplifying benefits - is it right to try to simplify the system? Are the proposals bold enough and should they go further?
• Breaking dependency - how far should people be expected to take responsibility? Is it fair to ask people to work for benefits, undertake treatment programmes, take up training or have their benefits cut?
• Personalising support - what's the best way to give people the help and support they need to get back to work and to give people control over the money spent on them?

You can find the full list of consultation questions online, including more detail on the proposals and information about how you can contribute.

Promoting the consultation

We want to ensure that everyone has the opportunity to contribute their views about the welfare reform proposals by 22 October.

You can help by promoting and publicising the consultation more widely, and encouraging colleagues, members, supporters, volunteers, friends and family to participate.

• Could you include details of the consultation in your e-bulletin or newsletter?
• Have you set up a link from your website to the consultation details on the DWP website?
• Would you like to involve your members in your response to the consultation?

If so, please download our consultation toolkit - it gives you all the information you need.

Stakeholder news

A round-up of business information for stakeholders

Employment and Support Allowance

The new Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) will be launched on 27 October 2008.

As noted in previous editions of in touch, ESA represents a fundamental shift in the way that the Department for Work and Pensions engages with its customers who have illnesses or disabilities.

ESA will replace Incapacity Benefit and Income Support paid on incapacity grounds for new customers. The principle underlying this change is that everyone should have the opportunity to work, and that people with an illness or disability should be provided with more of the help and support necessary for them to engage in appropriate employment, if they are able and when they are ready to do so.

Central to ESA are new medical assessments which examine what the customer can do, rather than what they can't. ESA builds on the success of the 'Pathways to Work' programme, which has helped more than 64,000 people into work since October 2003.

Last month, in touch outlined the plans for the media campaign that will support the introduction of the new allowance. These plans have now been put into action, starting with a series of advertisements that will appear in relevant trade publications and on selected websites from this month.

More information about ESA is also available from the DWP website. This site will continue to be updated and expanded in the run-up to the launch.

Engagement and dialogue about ESA also continues with the Jobcentre Plus Customer Representative Group Forum.

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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