Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help young people find employment.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
The most recent Official ONS Labour Market Statistics, for the period October to December 2022, show that the current youth employment rate was 54.1%. This is up 3.2% on 2010 figures and 6.6% above the G7 average.
This Government remains committed to delivering a comprehensive and tailored package of support for 16–24-year-olds claiming Universal Credit and seeking employment or progression through the DWP Youth Offer. This includes an initial 13 weeks of intensive help through the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for those with complex barriers to employment and our national network of partner led Youth Hubs.
For the young people of Stourbridge, the Dudley Youth Hub is a fundamental part of the support offered. Through this Hub, our work coaches can meet with claimants who have a barrier to employment in an alternative setting that allows them to feel at ease and engage with a range of on-site services. Examples of this include a range of employer and recruitment events, Disability Employment Advisors matching claimants with Disability Confident employers and regular National Career Service pre-employability training.
Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people have entered employment through the Way to Work campaign as of 15 May 2022.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
As of 15 May, we estimate that at least 317,800 unemployed Universal Credit claimants have moved into work during the Way to Work Campaign between 31 January and the end of 15 May 2022. Furthermore, during March 2022 we have seen the highest number of into work movements on record for any March – over 99,800.
This total figure is composed of our into work measure to the end of March (over 192,600) and our internal management information for April (91,800) as well as data up to 15 May (33,400). Figures are rounded to the nearest 100.
The management information presented here has not been subjected to the usual standard of quality assurance associated with official statistics but is provided in the interests of transparency and timeliness.
Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what support is available to people claiming universal credit for the first time to help ensure that they receive their first payment (a) on time and (b) in full.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department has ensured high levels of payment timeliness with over 90% of new claims paid in full and on time as of October 2020; an increase from 88% in March 2020.
People receive support quickly, through the Universal Credit helpline and online. Additionally, we have provided funding to Citizens Advice and Citizens Advice Scotland, to deliver tailored and practical support to people making a claim to Universal Credit and receive their first full correct payment on time. This support has been bolstered by the announcement of a further 12 months of funding this year for Help to Claim.
Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many employment roles have been created by the kickstart scheme to this date; and how many and what proportion of those roles have been in the technology sector.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
Over 150,000 job placements have been approved for the Kickstart scheme. Over 50,000 vacancies have been made available for young people, so far over 6,000 job placements have started.
Over 4,000 of the vacancies are in the technology sector.
Although care is taken when processing and analysing Kickstart applications, referrals and starts, the data collected might be subject to the inaccuracies inherent in any large-scale recording system which has been developed quickly. The management information presented here has not been subjected to the usual standard of quality assurance associated with official statistics, but is provided in the interests of transparency.
Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many jobseekers have been referred to the Job Entry Targeted Support Programme since referrals began.
Answered by Mims Davies - Shadow Minister (Women)
To date, there have been around 41,100 referrals made to the Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) programme. This data is derived from unpublished management information which is collected for internal departmental use only and has not been quality assured to Official Statistics publication standards.
Asked by: Suzanne Webb (Conservative - Stourbridge)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what recent assessment she has made of the effectiveness of the roll-out of universal credit in (a) the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and (b) Stourbridge constituency.
Answered by Will Quince
The Department successfully completed the rollout of Universal Credit in December 2018 and it is available in every Jobcentre across the country including those across the Metropolitan Borough of Dudley and Stourbridge constituency. It is a modern, agile, personalised system which has scrapped the ‘cliff edges’ featured across legacy benefits, where money was lost when working more than 16, 24 and 30 hours.
Universal Credit provides claimants with the support they need to better prepare for work, move into work, or to increase earnings.