Greater Manchester Work Programme
The Work Programme forms a centrepiece of the Coalition government’s plans to reform welfare to work in the UK. While related reforms of benefits are being designed to increase incentives to work, changes to employment services (including the Work Programme) are planned to provide better quality support to enable more people to enter and remain in work.
Summary
Three organisations have been selected by DWP to become preferred bidders for delivering the Work Programme in Greater Manchester and Cheshire. The successful bidders are Avanta, G4S and Seetec. Programme delivery is expected to begin June/July 2011.
Based on DWP estimates, it is anticipated that the Work Programme will provide employment support to at least 170,000 long-term claimants of Jobseekers’ Allowance, Employment and Support Allowance, Incapacity Benefit and Income Support in Greater Manchester over its initial five year lifetime.
Contractors will be primarily paid by results – a share of the benefits savings that accrue when a customer enters and remains in employment. Eight different payment groups have been identified, with greater rewards available to prime contractors for supporting customers with more complex needs into sustained employment.
A ‘Black Box’ model of commissioning has been adopted by Government, providing minimal guidance to the prime contractors but enabling them maximum flexibility in designing their Work Programme plans.
Given a significant shared client group, there remain major opportunities for public and voluntary sector organisations to align, co-locate, co-case management and co-commission relevant support services with Work Programme prime contractors, helping ensure the best possible employment support service to Work Programme customers in Greater Manchester.
