The Pathways to Work scheme is helping people to come off incapacity benefit, new research claims.
A Department for Work and Pensions study has found that 8 per cent more people came off the benefit in areas piloting the scheme, compared with those where it does not operate, over a six-month period.
Pathways to Work helps people on incapacity benefit to find employment through work-focused interviews and sessions with specially trained personal advisers.
The pilots, which will be extended to cover 900,000 people within two years, are a key part of the government’s reforms to incapacity benefit, which are expected to be contained in a green paper due later this month.
Although researchers said they could not be certain that all the extra people who came off incapacity benefit in pilot areas went straight into employment, there was no evidence to suggest they were going onto other benefits.
The pilots started in three areas in 2003 and were rolled out in four more in 2004.
Incapacity Benefit reforms -Pathways to Work Pilots performance and analysis from www.dwp.gov.uk
Pilots cut numbers claiming benefit
January 19, 2006 in Disability
More from Community Care
Related articles:
Job of the week
Featured jobs
Employer Zone
‘Solutions can’t be scripted here – you have to be creative’
Putting a team around the social worker to make a difference to families
How working in residential care enables staff to build one-on-one relationships with young people
‘We will always challenge ourselves to transform our services to improve outcomes for children and families’
‘It’s our job is to observe the child, find their voice and be their advocate’
Employer zone – showcasing a selection of the sector’s top recruiters
Community Care Inform
Latest stories
Cafcass ‘in serious jeopardy’ regarding social work staffing due to pay constraints
‘Serious procedural failings’ led council to wrongly believe man posed risk to son, finds ombudsman
‘Passionate’ social workers help council gain outstanding rating, despite workforce challenges
TV investigation aims to highlight trauma faced by families from wrongful child protection action
Comments are closed.