Housing providers’ approaches to

tackling worklessnessAssessing Value and

Impact

Dave Simmonds, Inclusion

Research findings

Workless social-housing residents – key stats

3.5 million workless social-housing residents = 56% of working age (other tenures = 25%)

Nearly half workless for 12 months+ 35% claiming out of work benefits (other tenures = 8%) Workless social-housing residents 4 times more likely

to have long-term health conditions or disabilities and 6 times more likely to be lone parents than other workless

1.6 million social-housing residents predicted to be on the Work Programme (27% of w/age social-housing residents)

Lots being done by providers Widespread consensus that a housing providers’ role is not just about bricks

and mortar:‘Our vision is to create prosperous communities, enhance life chances and

maximise people’s opportunities – we see employment and skills as critical elements of this.’

88% doing thingsto help residents intowork, most doinglots:

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

Childcare provision/support

Jobs targeted specifically at workless people

Enterprise support

Projects providing support to find employment

Apprenticeships

Other information, advice and guidance services

Work experience placements

Money advice

Referrals to other organisations

Training and skills development

Dedicated projects, programmes and interventions Work opportunities

Universal services

Serving residents and communities

Social-housing residents particularlydisadvantaged in labour market, butmost providers donot limit employment and skills activities to their own residents...

...Many will need to improve their knowledge to do this: only 42% know the level of worklessness among tenants or residents

Residents only, 29%

Both residents and the wider

community, 71%

Lots of partnerships, but more engagement needed

Very few housing providers approach worklessness in isolation – they build particularly effective partnerships with other housing providers and with contractors in their supply chains...

...But more engagement with mainstream welfare to work provision is needed:– Only 28% are engaging with/linking up to Work

Programme– 35 housing orgs in WP supply chains = 2% of housing

sector

A wide-ranging approach to capturing value

63% of housing providers have mechanisms in place to review the impact and effectiveness of efforts to tackle worklessness...

...but a wide disparity in approach is preventing housing providers from comparing their work, benchmarking good practice and communicating their successes

The policy context and drivers for change

Welfare and housing reform Universal Credit: more financial responsibility

for tenants, less money to support housing costs and stronger incentives to find and sustain work

More outcome-focused employment support headed up by the Work Programme

Localism Act: new flexibilities to use fixed-term tenancies and limit eligibility, including employment status

Some London boroughs are doing this – e.g. prioritising applicants who are in work or seeking work

Less funding available

A tighter and more outcome-focused delivery landscape

Imperatives to join-up provision and avoid duplication

More worklessness activities funded internally, providers have greater freedom to prioritise residents

Recommendations

Recommendations to housing providers

Short term: work collectively to understand and benchmark worklessness among residents, in order to target opportunities and interventions and link up with mainstream provision

Longer term: establish and articulate the sector’s role or roles in a resident’s journey from worklessness into employment

Recommendations to prime welfare to work contractors

Short term: ensure that subcontracting terms allow housing providers to focus on the areas in which they operate and the groups with which they work best

Longer term: collaborate rather than compete in small areas with high concentrations of social housing and, where appropriate, contract housing providers to manage delivery in these areas

Recommendations to government

Short term: commit to making some information on tenants’ receipt of Housing Benefit available to housing providers following the transition to Universal Credit.

Longer term: reward housing providers for reducing worklessness among residents on a payment by results basis