Nearly nine million people who are economically inactive risk
being left out of the labour market for even longer due to a
complex patchwork of disconnected national schemes and services
which fail to directly address their needs, councils warn.
Research for the LGA shows there are at least 51 national
programmes, services or initiatives in England designed to
support people back to work in various ways, but none of these
join up, with very few designed specifically to address economic
inactivity.
The LGA said councils are ready and willing to work with
government on finding a way through to encourage more people into
work, whether through job-matching, retraining, upskilling or
improving confidence and self-esteem. It comes ahead of the
publication of latest official figures, which are expected to
show the number of people who are economically inactive remains
at around record highs.
People who are economically inactive - those who are not in
employment, who are not looking for a job or are not able to
start work - has reached a record high of 8.7 million in the UK
and remains stagnant. Not all of them will be able to work, but
for those that can and want to, many are ineligible for national
job support from jobcentres if they are not claiming out-of-work
benefits. This means people who want to get back to work miss
out, leaving vacancies unfilled, leading to falling productivity
and sluggish economic growth.
The reasons for economic inactivity range from physical and
mental health conditions, a loss of confidence or self-esteem, to
more practical factors such as access to transport and the need
to upskill and earn new qualifications.
The LGA, which represents councils, says a more joined up
approach across the Government and a commitment to work through
local government to design and target support is vital to
addressing the underlying causes of why so many people are out of
the jobs market and unable or unwilling to return.
The report by Shared Intelligence, commissioned by the LGA,
recommends giving local government a leading role in helping
people back to work in their areas with long-term, simplified
funding. Eligibility for existing programmes should be broadened
out to better reach people that are economically inactive, and
that any support must be linked to other frontline services such
as public health, housing, adult and community learning and the
NHS.
Evidence in the report shows that local government is also able
to bring together a range of agencies and local partners with
first-hand experience of how to support people back into work.
It also finds that deep seated causes of why a person is
economically inactive can take time to diagnose and highlights
the need for longer term funding and joined up services across a
place, so professionals can work together. Providing in-work
support is also a vital component in helping people hold down new
jobs, the report says.
Routing long-term support and funding through councils and
devolved authorities, rather than being limited to specific
programmes or timeframes managed by different agencies or
Whitehall departments, will bring partners such as employers and
providers closer together, provide flexibility to changing local
market conditions and make the most of public funding.
Cllr Martin Tett, Chairman of the Local Government Association’s
People and Places Board, said:
“Economic inactivity does not have a quick fix and short-term,
limited schemes will not be enough to get millions of people back
into work.
“Councils know their communities best and can use their unique
coordinating role to tackle this fundamental national issue and
its underlying causes.
“Given the right powers and funding, local government can do so
much more to unlock the labour market, join up support and boost
economic growth”
Notes to Editors:
The report found at least 51 national initiatives are led by 17
public bodies or organisations, of which 12 are government
departments and five are either executive agencies,
non-departmental government bodies or organisations commissioned
by central government. Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
funded the largest number of programmes (over a third), followed
by Department for Education (DfE) who fund 16 per cent and the
Ministry of Defence (MOD) who fund 10 per cent. The National
Health Service (NHS) supports a further eight per cent. Other
departments and authorities lead on at least one initiative.
Make It Local: local
government's vital role in addressing economic activity
