Making skills work

Caroline Flint, Minister of State for Employment and Welfare Reform

For many people, work is one of the most fulfilling aspects of their lives. It gives them a focus, provides mental stimulation and allows them to meet friends and even partners.

In fact, for most people work means more than money — it means they are better off in terms of their health and wellbeing, their self-esteem and their future prospects.

That's why this government wants to see more people enjoying the benefits that work can bring.

Over the past decade, we have made huge progress in getting more people into work, reducing child poverty and benefit dependency.

But there are still too many people without the skills or confidence to get a job and that must change if we are to build on today's record employment levels and work towards our goal of full employment.

Safety net

We want to provide a financial safety net for those who cannot work, but equally, the days when benefit dependency was seen as a way of life is no longer acceptable.

To ensure people get the skills they need to both find a job and stay in work, the Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills published a paper setting out how we will bring welfare and skills together.

"Opportunity, Employment and Progression: making skills work" introduces a series of measures designed to unlock talents and skills so people are better equipped to compete in the world or work and thereby provide for their families.

When they first make a claim for out-of-work benefits, people will be screened to identify basic numeracy, literacy or language skills.

Those identified with skills needs which are a major barrier to finding employment will be encouraged to attend a full skills health check, delivered by the new adult advancement and careers service.

Skills health check

Personal advisers will be able to make these skills health checks mandatory for people with obvious skills needs who have been claiming Jobseeker's Allowance or the new Employment and Support Allowance for six months. To open up more opportunities for training, we intend to increase the number of funded places for short, full-time work-focused courses.

People who have claimed Jobseeker's Allowance for more than six months will undergo up to eight weeks' employability training that is focused on local employment needs.

As part of our proposals, we also want to help more lone parents into work.

At the moment, lone parents move from Income Support to Jobseekers Allowance when their youngest child turns 16, and with that comes the mandatory obligation to look for work. However, we have been consulting on whether this age should be lowered to 12.

To prepare them for this, we will screen all lone parents in advance of their move to jobseeker's allowance and encourage them to undergo a skills health check.

This will give them the time to gain skills and qualifications so they are ready for the labour market. We intend to consult on whether this should be mandatory.

Progress

Improving people's skills is a key factor in getting them ready for work. But we also want to make sure people stay in work and progress in their careers.

The new Local Employment Partnerships are a real example of how we can integrate the employment and skills systems so we provide a seamless path from unemployment to a fulfilling career.

These partnerships will see local companies working more closely with Jobcentre Plus and its partners to help those who have been on benefit for a long time get the help and support they need to find and stay in work.

Through these partnerships, we are also asking major companies to employ at least 250,000 job-ready long-term benefit claimants over the next three years.

More than 200 companies are already committed and we are talking to 300 or so other firms and organisations also interested in signing up.

To support this jobs pledge, we are also asking employers to make a Skills Pledge to train their staff.

Employers who sign up will support all their employees to develop basic literacy and numeracy skills and work towards a full level 2 qualification equivalent to five GCSEs A* to C.

UK commission

In recognition of the crucial role employers will play in these reforms, we are creating the UK Commission for Employment and Skills chaired by Sir Mike Rake.

The commission will be at the centre of raising the UK's skills base, advising on how we can make the employment and skills system flexible enough to respond to changing employment trends and employer demand.

It will give employers greater influence over the employment and skills system, while also giving more responsibility for ensuring the system is working for them. Overall, we are creating a package of measures that will provide those on long-term benefit with more training, more jobs and more opportunities.

Having set about tackling unemployment and inactivity — one million fewer people are claiming benefits now than 10 years ago — we now want to build on this remarkable achievement to show that work is the best benefit of all.