WIREDGOV

Families who haven't worked for years will be helped to climb out of poverty and into employment through a new £40 million job and skills drive, announced Communities Secretary John Denham last week.

While the number of long-term jobless families in deprived areas has fallen by 13 per cent over the last ten years, Mr Denham is determined to step up action to support the remaining 70,000 back into work. He wants to see that no-one is left behind especially now when the rest of the country is fighting to recover from the downturn.

Many of the families who have been unemployed for years become entrenched in a culture of worklessness - the Government will give people the right support they need to get a job, but equally will expect them to take up the offer or risk financial sanctions like losing benefits.

 Mr Denham is extending the Government's support to communities during the economic downturn; building on a £3bn investment that's improved the Jobcentre Plus service; the guaranteed a job or training to all long-term unemployed young people; and Backing Young Britain - a rallying call to businesses, charities and government bodies to create more opportunities for young people.

The extra Working Neighbourhood funding announced last week will allow 61 councils to do more, including directly stepping in to help the lives of some of the poorest people to get them in shape for work and off long term benefits, providing the support and skills they need.

One of the most effective ways of reaching out to the long-term unemployed is through social landlords, who already have relationships with their tenants. Mr Denham believes they can become the 'doorway' for council-led agency interventions.

Councils could use the recent funding in this way to bring in qualified job counsellors or use trusted people, like social landlords, to convince people they can be better off financially in work. Research has shown that worklessness is an issue for over 80 per cent of the most challenged families, which is why this new investment is being provided to expand on measures already in place.

In Greenwich, for example, the council is working hand-in-hand with the job centre outreach team to bring the social landlord, local business and skills providers together through local job and skills fairs on housing estates.

John Denham said:

"We're determined to do more to help these families, they need to know they have not fallen through the net, or been written off.

"Their circumstances are often complex and they feel cut off from the job market. That's why today I'm announcing £40million of new funding for councils to make sure these families are getting the helping hand they need from local services so they can start to stand on their own two feet.

"We can reach them through existing links like their social landlord or outreach projects that can reconnect them with skills training and job opportunities.

"In past recessions we saw too much talent and potential get left behind - we are determined to make sure that this will never happen again. Through the New Deal we have effectively tackled youth unemployment, the next stage is to get to grips with the most difficult to reach families. We are continuing to help them by putting additional investment - into the hands of local leaders - and asking them to take immediate action.

"Now more than ever people need to know system is fair and that we are doing everything we can to give every person, even those from entrenched corners, a fair chance to realise their potential in life, pushing against poverty and striving towards aspiration. This will reduce the burden placed on state dependency."

Housing Minister John Healey added:

"There is scope for social landlords to do more to support tenants. We know that councils and housing associations tend to be trusted by their tenants and that many already provide advice services and want to do more.

"As part of their service to tenants I want to see more landlords offering the 'better off in work' calculations, which tell people how much better off they'd be in a job and give them more confidence in making the leap from welfare to work.

"This extra funding means local councils and social landlords can do more to help their tenants back into work."

Mr Denham is clear people need to know that tackling worklessness is the priority now more than ever, that the system is fair and doing everything it can to reduce the burdens on the state.

He wants to see councils put the extra resources government is putting at their disposal to work quickly to help every person in their area to develop skills and get meaningful work - crucial for the most deprived communities.

Over the last decade employment levels have risen and more jobs have been created. Latest statistics show nearly 29 million people were in work in July to September an employment rate of 72.5 per cent and the number of workforce jobs was 30.9 million in June 2009. According to the ONS there were around 428,000 unfilled vacancies in the three months to October 2009. The New Deal has helped 800,000 young people into work effectively tackling long-term youth unemployment. Almost 80 per cent of 16 to 18 year olds are in education or training - the highest ever.

Government investment has already transformed large parts of the country with SureStart centres, rising school standards, modernised social housing and neighbourhood policing. We are now doing more through the expanded Working Neighbourhoods Fund (WNF) and the Connecting Communities programme to ensure no community is left out in the cold. Councils like Nottingham and Barnsley are already using WNF to double the length of time of a Future Jobs Funds placement to a year.

David Orr, Chief Executive, National Housing Federation said:

"We welcome this additional funding source and we would invite local authorities to make use of housing associations' unique ability of working with residents to deliver positive outcomes.

"Housing associations are increasingly recognised as key community anchors. They have the trust of their residents and are always working in partnership to provide meaningful employment and training opportunities. Our National Future Jobs Fund Consortia programme with Groundwork UK and over 70 housing associations is on schedule to deliver over 2,300 jobs in 6 months."

Councillor Steve Houghton Leader of Barnsley Council and worklessness champion for Government added:

"We must to everything we can to ensure that those farthest away from employment and prosperity in our most deprived areas are not left behind.

"I know that those local partnerships receiving WNF are already doing much good work to respond to the needs of their local residents. I also know that many partnerships can and want to do more. This extra resource will enable them to go further to respond to the challenges they face.

"Here in Barnsley we are using WNF funding to extend Future Jobs Fund Placements from 6 months to 12 months. This additional funding will allow us to offer even more young people and disadvantaged others a chance to improve their future."

Notes to editor

1. The WNF goes to the 61 local authorities with the highest levels of deprivation and low levels of skills and enterprise. Since 2008 £1.5bn of funding has been distributed or allocated for councils to decide how to use best to tackle worklessness. Today's announcement gives them extra resources to find new ways of reaching out to isolated communities.

2. The authorities were chosen because they were among the most deprived areas on the new Index of Multiple Deprivation 2007 and because they were among the districts with the highest non-employment rate. WNF is distributed through the non-ring fenced Area Based Grant. The WNF grants are distributed as follows:

3. The Hills report revealed over half of working age social tenants are workless compared to 34 per cent in 1981. For young people the picture is even worse - 80 per cent of new tenants aged 16-24 are without work. The full report of the study, Ends and Means: The Future Roles of Social Housing in England, published February 2007, can be found at: www.communities.gov.uk/housing/strategiesandreviews/hillsreport/.

4. The Cabinet Office report Reaching Out: An Action Plan on Social Exclusion, published in September 2006, identified that children from the 5 per cent most disadvantaged families were over 100 times more likely to face multiple problems than those from the most advantaged 50 per cent. The full report can be found at: www.cabinetoffice.gov.uk/social_exclusion_task_force/publications/reaching_out.aspx (external link).

5. The New Deal which has helped 800,000 young people into work we have effectively ended long-term youth unemployment. Almost 80 per cent of 16 to 18 year olds are participating in education or training - the highest ever. The number of young people claiming JSA for six months or more is down 77 per cent since the height of the 90's recession and 84 per cent since 1985. And only 20 per cent of young people receiving JSA claim for more than six months - compared with 51 per cent in the 90's recession and 57 per cent in 1985.

6. Government is determined to make sure everyone has the real help they need now to support them through these difficult times, and to make sure they have the skills to play a full role in preparing for recovery. That is why it has:

• Established the September Guarantee so that every young person aged 16 and 18 is offered a suitable place in learning with an additional £655m for a record high of more than 1.5 million places, and
• Committed to funding 100 000 jobs for young people through the Future Jobs Fund, as part of a £1 billion package of investment.
• Introduced the Young Person's Guarantee, so that every young person approaching a year on Job Seekers Allowance will be offered a job from the Future Jobs Fund, training, or a place on a community task force.
• Increased the graduate support available to those struggling in a tougher jobs market - with more places for postgraduate study and more help to find suitable internships or volunteering options.
• Government has committed to supporting 20 000 apprenticeships over the next three years through our procurement policies. An encouraging step forward was the council commitment to creating 7 500 new apprenticeships.
• Set up the Backing Young Britain campaign which calls on businesses, charities and government organisations to create thousands of opportunities for young people taking their first steps on the career ladder through volunteering places, work experience, internships and apprenticeships.
• Set up the Connecting Communities programme to make sure that local people are having a fair say and that they feel the benefits of government support.
• The Prime Minister announced a commitment to provide FIPs for all families that need them with £26 million additional investment to support 10,000 families each year from 2010-11. FIPs have successfully targeted about 2,600 families since 2006 helping them change their anti-social behaviour and turn their family's lives around.
• WNF Reward will be consulted on in the coming weeks. 

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