Welfare Reform Team Evaluation of European Social Fund pilot project 2014-2015

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target customers, as most had been living with the LHA reforms for at least two years. In 2013-14, the bedroom tax and benefit cap were new reforms which created a sense of crisis for many customers, and this helped to provide a way in for a new team proactively reaching out to them. There are more job vacancies in Oxford than there are people on JSA, and many people are able to transition from job to job with only brief periods of unemployment and without the need for support. Although we started to proactively contact new housing benefit claimants during the project, in many cases their engagement was fleeting or non-existent because they moved back into work independently. It also meant that many project customers had been on benefits long term and therefore needed intensive support to return to work. Project customers sometimes had unrealistic expectations about the type of work they would be able to do, and their aspirations were not always matched by their experience, skills or qualifications – or, sometimes, by the availability of particular types of job vacancy. For these customers, managing their expectations sometimes proved to be a barrier to engagement and progression. During the project we recorded a total of 288 referrals to partners and other agencies, with many customers being offered multiple referrals for different types of support. Fifty five participants had no recorded referral to a partner, primarily because they found work without external referral, they did not take up a referral or they failed to attend a referral meeting or activity. As a result of these factors, take up of project support was much less than anticipated, and we attracted significantly fewer project participants than we had planned for. Despite these difficulties, more than a quarter (27%) of project customers found sustainable work. Customers whose employment status was known when they left the project are shown below. 62
Status on leaving the project 6 6% 62 56% 39 35% Economically inactive Employed In education or training Unemployed 3 3% The work of the project contributed to the wider aims of the team. For example, 81project customers who were subject to the benefit cap have had the benefit cap removed. Forty (49%) were exempted from the benefit cap because they claimed working tax credit, with a further nine (11%) gaining disability exemptions when DLA or Personal Independence Payment (PIP) were awarded to a member of the household. 40 49% Project customers with benefit cap removed 3 4% 9 11% 6 7% 4 5% Claim cancelled/no longer qualifies for HB DLA/PIP Left Oxford 19 24% Moved to cheaper accommodation Income below cap Working Tax Credit The initial project target proved to be problematic for several reasons, although the challenge of aiming for a target that proved to be unachievable did present a number of opportunities for us. When initial take up was slow, we were proactive in identifying new or inactive referral channels. For example, we began to write to new housing benefit claimants 63
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Welfare Reform Team Evaluation of E
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The project in numbers 230 particip
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found very difficult to cope with,
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Partnerships This section outlines
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• the setting up of the Welfare R
Page 11 and 12: • two Welfare Reform Project Offi
Page 13 and 14: Project milestones and changes to p
Page 15 and 16: • ESF Department made an on the s
Page 17 and 18: 3. Marketing & Communications The t
Page 19 and 20: The team has an active Twitter acco
Page 21 and 22: 4. Partnerships A key aim of the ES
Page 23 and 24: nominated JCP work coaches, and a s
Page 25 and 26: Customer selfrefers through DHP app
Page 27 and 28: Customers gave lack of experience,
Page 29 and 30: 40 Confidence in finding work in th
Page 31 and 32: DHP in future 11 . For project cust
Page 33 and 34: Customer stories The best way to il
Page 35 and 36: When Richard was benefit capped in
Page 37 and 38: Ayesha Ayesha is a single parent wi
Page 39 and 40: Laurence We helped Laurence as part
Page 41 and 42: Mel and Ian agreed to follow both o
Page 43 and 44: 6. Performance & Documentation Meas
Page 45 and 46: People on JSA who have not found wo
Page 47 and 48: 50% 45% 43% Confidence in ICT skill
Page 49 and 50: Management information There was a
Page 51 and 52: The team should consider whether da
Page 53 and 54: There were 38 responses to the cust
Page 55 and 56: “Want to do permitted work and ne
Page 57 and 58: Appropriateness of referrals “Yes
Page 59 and 60: “We supplied members of staff fro
Page 61: We met with our Communications team
Page 65 and 66: funded by ESF to deliver the projec
Page 67 and 68: we felt least likely to engage with
Page 69 and 70: Appendices Appendix 1 Communication
Page 72 and 73: Questionnaire Summary Results This
Page 74 and 75: Questionnaire: Partner survey - Wel
Page 80 and 81: Respondent Name esfp18 Respondent E
Page 82: Appendix 4 DWP Unit Cost Savings fo
Page 85 and 86: | UnemployedMonths Gender | 12 - 23
Page 87 and 88: RECODE of | LeavgStat | (LeavingSta
Page 89 and 90: -------------------+---------------
Page 91 and 92: CHI SQUARE TESTS OF ASSOCIATION . t
Page 93 and 94: . tab LeavgStat2 Ethnicity3, row co
Page 95 and 96: . tab LeavgStat2 debt, row col exac
Page 97 and 98: Questionnaire Summary Results This
Page 99 and 100: The Job Fair was useful to encourag
Page 101 and 102: Questionnaire: Customer survey - We
Page 103 and 104: Questionnaire: Customer survey - We
Page 105 and 106: Respondent Name Respondent Email Ad
Page 107 and 108: Barton Neighbourhood Job Fair 15 th
Page 109 and 110: General comments on the above feedb
Page 111 and 112: Barton Job Fair July 2015 - Appendi
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Barton Job Fair July 2015 - Appendi
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Barton Job Fair July 2015 - Summary
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Welfare Reform Team Oxford City Cou
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