Five things to look out for in the Get Britain Working white paper

The Get Britain Working white paper, out tomorrow, is an opportunity to fundamentally improve how the DWP delivers employment support to people with health conditions, and plug some of the holes left in the system from austerity.

With 4.2 million people in receipt of health related benefits, and two thirds of these on long term sickness support, the bill for disability related benefits is set to rise from £60 billion today, to over £100 billion by 2030.

Whatever is included in this major report tomorrow, some groups will be delighted, others will feel short changed.

We believe that underinvestment in health, cuts to benefits, and an employment support regime that is seen to be punitive or difficult to access have left many people struggling to access effective back to work support. This has contributed to the rising number of people on sickness benefits.

We’ll follow up once the official white paper is out, but ahead of publication, this article sets out five policy shifts that Policy in Practice hopes to see in the Get Britain Working white paper.

We believe that the following policy shifts will slow the rise in the number of people off work due to ill health:

1. Give earlier access to physical and mental health support, such as physiotherapy or talking therapies, to help people who have to take time off to return to work as soon as possible
2. Provide incentives for employers to offer more flexible opportunities for people returning to work, and to support employees to stay healthy and return to work quickly
3. Improve statutory sick pay, making support available from day one, with support rising to the equivalent of the National Living Wage. Currently, 45% of new claims for disability related benefits come from employees that had taken a period of sick leave
4. Concentrate on engagement in employment support programs as a key measure of success, alongside employment outcomes that place people in suitable long term employment
5. Give Jobcentre Plus advisors more time, by partnering with local authorities and other local agencies, to deliver a straightforward employment support offer that meets local needs, is easier to navigate, and uses data to help people access the support they need

The Get Britain Working white paper is focused on people who are off work due to long term ill health. This investment is much needed, as is investment in data to help local authorities deliver other white paper commitments like enhanced employment support, proactive engagement with young people not in employment, education, or training (NEETs), and monitoring delivery to hold providers to account.

Ahead of the release of the Get Britain Working white paper Deven Ghelani said:

The success of this plan will rely upon local partners like Jobcentre Plus and local authorities working together to proactively identify people who are out of work and then providing an engaging and effective support offer that brings together the best of what their local area has to offer.

Deven Ghelani discussed this on LBC with Nick Abbott on Sunday 24 November 2024. Listen back below.

Policy in Practice sees three factors driving rising ill health: the pandemic, an older working age population more likely to face health issues, and, at least in part, the impact of austerity.

The pandemic and an ageing workforce are realities that any government would have had to face, but certain policy choices stand out as contributing to the rise in sickness benefits, as we covered earlier this year.

1. Cuts to healthcare and social support have had a detrimental impact on the health and wellbeing of the population. They have made it harder for people to access the support they need quickly and easily. Earlier access to mental health support could help prevent young people from leaving the workforce, for example
2. Cuts to benefits have increased financial pressure on household budgets. With employment at record levels, many people have responded by finding work, while others needed access to health benefits to make ends meet. The risk of losing this support makes it harder for people with a long term health condition to look for work
3. The loss of support for people in the WRAG (work related activity group) in 2017 created a binary approach to work. People are either classed as able to work or too ill to work when often they may just need a little more time or support. The rise in health related benefits from 2018/19 correlates neatly with the end of WRAG support in 2017

Keir Starmer’s recent remarks are reported as echoing the Conservative stance of cracking down on benefits and tackling fraud. However, we note a distinct shift in tone that recognises both the value of work and the challenges of finding suitable and sustainable employment faced by people with disabilities.

We are seeing investment in public services. Enabling early access to healthcare support to help people who get sick return to work as soon as possible could help slow the rise in the need for disability benefits. This could include giving Job Centre work coaches enough time to tailor support either through automation and simplification of claims administration or funding more roles.

We hope to see additional investment in social security. While a rise in benefit levels is likely to be out of scope for the Get Britain Working white paper we could see measures that seek to slow the rise in claims for sickness benefits. This could include a furlough style scheme for people newly out of work allowing them the time they need to get better and find a role that best suits them.

Such a time limited scheme would remove the incentive to seek long term unemployment for health reasons. The furlough scheme introduced during the pandemic was a tacit admission that existing benefits were insufficient to support people facing unexpected job losses.

The lack of support for people once they fall ill no doubt contributes to long term sickness. 45% of new claims to disability related benefits come from employees who have taken a period of sick leave.

A reformed and beefed up statutory sick pay scheme that offers people support from day one could encourage employers to invest in occupational health support that stops people from leaving work for the long term or gives people the space to recover.

Similarly, early access to employment support would be a way for people who are unwell to start the journey back to work much sooner.

Finally, the whole system needs to be simpler for people to navigate.

Employment support has veered from large national schemes like Restart, to local skills provision provided by small charities, local authorities and others. Diversity of support is fine, but people need to know what support is available to them, and how to access it.

Making support easier to access is as essential for employment support just as much as it is for accessing benefits.

We would love to see a mention of using data to highlight the opportunities available to people in the Get Britain Working white paper, and one simple employment scheme rather than a multitude of schemes targeted to different groups of people.

£240 million sounds like a lot of money but it will need to be used intelligently to make a real difference. It’s encouraging to see £15 million of this going to local trailblazers, and £115 million to more local areas. We hope this money will be used to encourage partners to work together, using data to deliver employment support in targeted, proactive and evidence based ways that suit the needs and abilities of people in the local area.

Policy in Practice hopes to see a strong role for local authorities and will cover the Get Britain Working white paper in greater detail over the coming days and weeks. Subscribe to this blog for updates.