The Changing Futures programme is a £91.8 million joint funded initiative between Government and The National Lottery Community Fund, the largest community funder in the UK. The programme funds local organisations working in partnership in 15 local areas across England to better support those who experience multiple disadvantage.
Over the last year, MEAM has brought the local programme leads together for regular discussions about key aspects of the work. In this series of blog posts, we reflect on some of the topics covered, drawing on their insight and input from others in the Changing Futures programme and the wider MEAM Approach network.
In this next blog of the “Reflections and Learning” series, we take a brief look at the types of things that are important to consider when supporting people experiencing multiple disadvantage to find and maintain work, and to support welfare benefit claims.
When someone experiencing multiple disadvantage is in in crisis and systems of support are failing them, finding or maintaining employment is rarely a first focus for intervention, with the immediate need being stabilisation and service co-ordination.
Some individuals will need long-term support outside the labour market. However, for many others, well-paid and meaningful employment is an important goal. Good quality and fulfilling work can form part of someone’s recovery journey and offer a route out of poverty.
For many people experiencing multiple disadvantage, formal experiences of employment can be sporadic and even for those with significant employment histories, finding and returning to work, while making sense of the trauma they have experienced, can be intimidating and overwhelming. Effective and personalised support around employment is therefore vital.
What format does good employment support take?
In their route (back) to work, many people take a blended approach, with a mixture of volunteering, learning & vocational training and part-time and full-time work. Some people tend towards roles that lean on their lived experience of multiple disadvantage, while others prefer a path in unrelated sectors.
For either route, personalised and long-term support is vital to enable people to find opportunities, sustain them, avoid setbacks, grow in confidence and become comfortable in the workplace. People facing multiple disadvantage often rely on voluntary services for this, rather than the mainstream DWP provision.
In the sector or elsewhere?
In speaking with Changing Futures areas, one common employment route is is for people to be employed as a peer mentor or support worker. This has multiple benefits, helping to (re)introduce people back into the rhythm of work, and leveraging their own lived experience in an authentic way to connect and support people who are currently in crisis. Often people describe a strong desire to “give back” to the services that have supported them, through supporting others in similar positions.
However, these roles are not for everyone. Relapse and regression are concerns in peer mentor and support worker roles, particularly when the person with lived experience is not well supported by an employer, is asked to do too much too quickly, or struggles to balance personal and professional responsibilities. Setbacks can intensify quickly, and so this type of work is not suitable or desirable for everyone, and these types of roles shouldn’t be seen as an essential stepping stone for someone experiencing multiple disadvantage who wants to take a first step closer to the labour market.
For those who prefer to seek opportunities directly in unrelated sectors, a range of similar barriers also exist. There can remain in some places significant stigma from employers around employing someone who has experienced mental health issues or had contact with the criminal justice system, been homeless, or used substances in the past. In roles away from the social sector, the long-term and personalised support that people need to sustain work can also often be harder to access. In some places, there are excellent examples of services providing support and employers which are focussed on offering opportunities for individuals, for example, we heard about Grow Traineeships in Manchester, and also connections to the adult education sector, for example, the Double Impact Employment Academy in Nottinghamshire and Lincolnshire.
What support and barriers exist within the welfare benefits system for people seeking employment?
For many people experiencing multiple disadvantage, the welfare benefits system provides a vital lifeline to ensure that people can continue to meet their material needs while they get the support they need to progress before and during employment. People may be claiming a mixture of Universal Credit and also disability related benefits.
There are however many challenges. The claimant process of Universal Credit is long and waiting for a first payment can see people incur debt, the process is digital-first, and cannot be started in prison. Many people who experience multiple disadvantage describe the process and environment within Job Centres to continue claims and to look for work as intimidating and often not set up to meet their needs holistically. While flexibility and discretion are often available to Job Centre staff, it is not always clear how to access it and people lack the confidence to try.
People experiencing multiple disadvantage often have significant changes to their circumstances relevant to benefit claims that happen quickly – the benefits system struggles to keep up, thereby penalising short bursts of inactivity or reductions in working hours taken by people in order to better manage mental or physical health, or to allow for unpaid work or caring responsibilities.
However, we also heard from some Changing Futures areas where local partnerships have built up strong relationships with Job Centres and now have procedures in place to help flag someone who may require extra support in making and maintaining a welfare benefit claim and who would benefit from greater discretion when making sanctions.
What’s helpful to support people experiencing multiple disadvantage into work?
Clearly, greater involvement of business within these conversations and support for businesses to employ people experiencing multiple disadvantage will bring overall benefit. People experiencing multiple disadvantage bring positive new perspectives, skills and experience into workplaces, but as outlined above, they need to be supported appropriately.
This type of support for business and individuals is maturing with programmes like Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Grow, to support those with health conditions to find work that works for them, and there is optimism with other health/work programmes, such as Workwell, to provide low-intensity interventions to support work. The newly announced supported employment programme “Connect to Work” also provides an opportunity to broaden beyond simply health and work, and consider other barriers to work for people experiencing multiple disadvantage. As these programmes mature and grow, connecting with local partnerships that already exist around multiple disadvantage will be vital to make the most of these opportunities for individuals.