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  Client stories
  
  Luton Council secures £4.6 million for older people by boosting Pension Credit take up by 70%
  
  Haringey Council used data analytics to pinpoint individual households who could be over £7,500 a year better off
  
  80% of financially vulnerable people who engaged with DHP campaign received an average of £450
  
  How data-led take-up campaigns could help the DWP allocate £1.7 billion in unclaimed Pension Credit
  
  Haringey Council reduces barriers to work with data led employment campaigns
  
  Greenwich identifies £20 million of unclaimed benefits for residents
  
  Housing providers boost income using the Better Off Calculator
  
  Elite Supported Employment increased participant’s income by over £3,000
  
  Incomes of over 1,000 customers boosted by almost £3 million
  
  Using data led insights to take action on poverty in Redbridge
  
  Gravesham Council helps pensioners to secure over £184,000 in unclaimed benefits
  
  Citizens Advice Caerphilly help 6,000 clients boost their income by £3 million
  
  How East Riding of Yorkshire Council grew the income of 15,700 households by nearly £13 million
  
  Islington Council secures over £1 million for pensioners in successful Pension Credit take-up campaign
  
  Your Housing Group increases a widower’s income by £1,320 a year
  
  Anglian Water improves customer service and first-time resolution
  
  The Guinness Partnership helps one tenant to receive £13,800 in unclaimed Severe Disability Premium
  
  How Rotherham Metropolitan Borough Council helped over 200 residents into work or training
  
  Delivering unbroken support for 15,000 clients despite Covid-19
  
  Policy in Practice helps councils allocate £18.5 million in Household Support Funds
  
  View all
Policy and research
- Research and publications
  
  Missing out: £19 billion of support goes unclaimed each year
  Putting the ‘Universal’ into Universal Credit
  Evaluation of Local Welfare Assistance
  On Target: Protecting vulnerable households from the inflation crisis
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  Projects
  
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  Living Standards Index for London
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  Blog
  
  Autumn Statement 2023: Uprating benefits – the long view
  
  Autumn Statement 2023: A step forward after many steps back
  
  Universal Credit Managed Migration: What does it mean for local authorities, advice agencies and housing providers?
  
  View all

Webinars and events

Upcoming live webinars

Title	Date	Start Time	Duration	Register
Reducing barriers to work using data led campaigns In September 2023 the UK experienced an economic inactivity rate of 21.3% and an estimated unemployment rate of 4.3%, both of which have increased compared to previous data. Economic inactivity has surpassed pre-pandemic levels, prompting government efforts to integrate this group into the workforce. Historically, policies under Universal Credit and legacy benefits emphasised pushing people into employment through conditionality and short term measures. Today, both major political parties are exploring ways to facilitate return to work and eliminate barriers to employment. However, the government is also extending conditionality and adopting a tougher stance on sanctions for a broader range of people. Haringey is home to a young, ethnically diverse population. In June 2023, almost one fifth of those between 16 to 65 were on Universal Credit. Nearly 7% of residents over 16 were claiming unemployment related benefits, a figure above the London average of 4.7% and the 3rd highest rate of all UK councils Haringey Council wanted to find ways to overcome barriers to employment for young people and families with children and has used data to achieve success with its employment support programmes. Join this webinar to learn: - The new carrot and stick policy changes designed to break down barriers to work and reduce economic inactivity - What Haringey Council did to increase take up of free childcare for two year olds to 70% - How Haringey Council successfully helped 95 NEETs on their employment journey With guest speakers from Haringey Council	29/11/2023j/n/Y	10:30 GMT2023-11-29T10:30:00ZH:i T	1.3 hours	Register
Policy review of 2023 and what 2024 may hold Join our last webinar of 2023 to hear our policy analysts review 2023's policy changes and big issues, from the ongoing cost of living and energy crises to the funding of local government and the Autumn Statement. We will highlight our policy findings from the year including our work that revealed that millions of households across the UK are missing out on £19 billion of support each year. We'll look at the role that data is playing in helping leading organisations to tackle these issues. Through case studies of different types of households we'll look at what the changes mean for families now, and what 2024 has in store. Along the way we'll share the positive impact that organisations we work with are having, and give practical solutions that others can adopt.	6/12/2023j/n/Y	10:30 GMT2023-12-06T10:30:00ZH:i T	1.3 hours	Register
How the debt sector is connecting people to support	31/1/2024j/n/Y	10:30 GMT2024-01-31T10:30:00ZH:i T	1.3 hours	Register

On-demand webinars

How water companies are closing the unclaimed support gap

How data made London’s pensioners better off by over £8 million

What the latest energy price cap will mean for low income families this winter

How housing providers are boosting the financial strength of customers during the cost of living crisis

View all events

About
- We believe in the power of data and technology to change lives
  
  Policy in Practice is a social policy software and analytics company working with councils, government, housing providers and community organisations. We are a team of policy experts who combine cutting-edge tech, insightful data and expert analysis. We help organisations analyse the impact of policy, identify and engage the people impacted, and track the effectiveness of interventions.
  
  Our award winning Better Off calculator, linked to from GOV.UK, helps around 10,000 people every day find out what support they may be eligible for. Our data analytics services help organisations find relationships in datasets and visualise the drivers of poverty. We use our policy expertise to drive change via evidence, publications and media.
  
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Policy work

Policy in Practice is an independent organisation founded to simplify policy for people on the frontline

Browse our policy analysis evidence

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Browse our policy analysis blog posts

Benefit Cap Universal Credit Self employment Financing welfare Children Local government Housing Brexit Regional analysis

Energy crisis - image of radiator

Energy Price Guarantee: Just About Managing Households will still be worse off

September 21, 2022

Mind the benefit cap: why families are still falling through our welfare system

June 23, 2022

Photo of a woman to illustrate a blog post titled How the benefit system can do more to support women

IWD2021: How the benefit system can do more to support women

March 7, 2021

Photo to illustrate a blog post from Policy in Practice about data analysis on financially vulnerable residents in London

New analysis: Who are the most financially vulnerable residents in London?

September 3, 2020

Photo of young child on a London bus to illustrate new research by Policy in Practice on the interaction of COVID-19 measures and the Benefit Cap on low-income Londoners

New analysis: benefit capped households set to double

May 24, 2020

Image of an orange life buoy against a light grey wall to illustrate the importance of the welfare state after Coronavirus

The future of the welfare state after Coronavirus

May 12, 2020

Giovanni Tonutti, Policy in Practice, gave evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee on the impact of the Benefit Cap

Benefit Cap: Policy in Practice’s evidence to the Work and Pensions Select Committee

October 10, 2018

The Phase Two findings of our Low Income Londoners and welfare reform project looks at how the benefit cap affected Londoners.

How has the Benefit Cap affected Londoners?

March 26, 2018

Policy in Practice's Daniel Cavanillas takes an in depth look at the DWP's benefit cap impact assessment.

5 Things we learned from the Benefit Cap impact assessment

August 10, 2015

Autumn Statement 2023: A step forward after many steps back

November 24, 2023

Universal Credit Managed Migration: What does it mean for local authorities, advice agencies and housing providers?

November 13, 2023

Help for homeowners: Support for Mortgage Interest and other options

August 2, 2023

Photo of man holding a baby girl who is facing the camera to illustrate blog post about families on Universal Credit

How new extra support for childcare will help families on Universal Credit

June 25, 2023

House of Lords event

Cross-party event marks 10 years of Universal Credit at the House of Lords

May 30, 2023

Thermostat

Is a social tariff the best solution to high energy prices?

May 26, 2023

Report cover - £19 billion of income related benefits unclaimed each year

New analysis: Missing out: £19 billion of support goes unclaimed each year

May 1, 2023

Putting the 'Universal' into Universal Credit report by Policy in Practice

New report: Putting the ‘Universal’ in Universal Credit

March 14, 2023

colour photo of young woman with red hair wearing headphones and smiling to illustrate a blog post on managed migration to Universal Credit

Universal Credit’s managed migration discovery phase: lessons and opportunities

February 3, 2023

Universal Credit allows for uprating benefits in-year. The government should take advantage

November 10, 2022

Image to illustrate blog post by Deven Ghelani who was interviewed by Shelagh Fogerty on LBC about the Winter Economy Plan following the Chancellor's announcement. Listen back and view his tweet thread.

New COVID-19 measures announced in the Winter Economy Plan

September 25, 2020

Photo of a waiter to illustrate a blog post by Policy in Practice about the changes in the world of work and how the benefit system needs to adapt

Evidence: long term changes in the world of work and its implications for DWP

August 18, 2020

Employment Response to Coronavirus by Mark Cosen author

Coronavirus job losses demand better employment support services

July 15, 2020

How do the surplus earnings rules work in practice?

July 2, 2020

What Budget 2020 means for low-income families

March 13, 2020

What choices do self-employed people have with Universal Credit?

March 25, 2018

Autumn Statement 2023: Uprating benefits – the long view

November 27, 2023

Autumn Statement 2023: A step forward after many steps back

November 24, 2023

Deven Ghelani giving evidence on UK benefit levels to the Work and Pensions Committee

Benefit levels in the UK: Policy in Practice’s evidence to the Work and Pensions Committee

June 15, 2023

Image of girl child in distinctive glasses on shoulder of male adult to illustrate blog post on the importance of discretionary funding such as the new Household Support Fund for councils

Household Support Fund: Schemes should consider new Local Welfare Assistance research

March 6, 2023

Photo of the hands of a child and two adults to illustrate a blog post about the a minimum income for benefit recipients

Is now the time for a minimum income for benefit recipients?

February 10, 2023

Photo of a factory entrance with the word employees written above it to illustrate a blog post on economic inactivity

Tackling economic inactivity amongst the UK’s working age adults

January 16, 2023

Image of £5 sterling bank note to illustrate a blog post on low-income households and their income after benefits are uprated in April 2023

Low income households will still be worse off in April 2023 despite extra support

December 12, 2022

Autumn Statement 2022 and low income families

November 21, 2022

In-work poverty - Cafe worker

In-work poverty: Government can make work pay for three million working families on Universal Credit

November 16, 2022

Universal Credit allows for uprating benefits in-year. The government should take advantage

November 10, 2022

Photo of a young child reading a picture book that's on a coffee table in a sunlight living room

New study launched to investigate links between poverty and child welfare

September 29, 2023

Photo of man holding a baby girl who is facing the camera to illustrate blog post about families on Universal Credit

How new extra support for childcare will help families on Universal Credit

June 25, 2023

Spring Budget 2023: Childcare changes

Spring Budget 2023: Fewer barriers to work but harsher conditionality

March 16, 2023

Free School Meals should be extended to all households on Universal Credit

July 20, 2022

Image of a sad boy to illustrate a blog post on what linking children’s social care and benefits data can tell us

What linking children’s social care and benefits data can tell us

January 25, 2022

Four practical steps the DWP can take today to improve Universal Credit

Free school meals should be for all school holidays, not just for Christmas

November 16, 2020

Photo of teenage boy at home to illustrate the need to fund free school meals

Why it pays for the government to fund Free School Meals

November 1, 2020

Man kissing laughing baby to illustrate importand of Healthy Start vouchers

Going without? 46% of eligible families aren’t claiming Healthy Start vouchers

February 24, 2020

New research: The impact of welfare reform on child vulnerability

May 11, 2019

Using data analytics to understand child vulnerability

April 17, 2019

Autumn Statement 2023: Uprating benefits – the long view

November 27, 2023

Closing the £19 billion unclaimed benefits gap, sector by sector

July 14, 2023

Image of girl child in distinctive glasses on shoulder of male adult to illustrate blog post on the importance of discretionary funding such as the new Household Support Fund for councils

Household Support Fund: Schemes should consider new Local Welfare Assistance research

March 6, 2023

Public Finance Awards

Policy in Practice wins with local government at Public Finance Awards 2022

November 30, 2022

Kent county and districts collaborate

Kent County and district councils collaborate with data to tackle poverty

November 19, 2021

People under umbrellas in the rain

How to predict the demand for your customer-facing services in April 2021

October 14, 2020

Sunset and beach

Collecting council tax after COVID-19

October 5, 2020

Busy street

New figures reveal jobseeker’s claimant count more than doubles due to COVID-19

September 17, 2020

Local Housing Allowance freeze and homelessness

New analysis: Evidencing the link between the Local Housing Allowance freeze and homelessness

February 5, 2020

Local Housing Allowance freeze and homelessness

Designing effective data-led local authorities

January 29, 2020

Child playing in street

How two housing providers boosted tenants’ incomes by over £5 million

September 12, 2023

UK housing

How the housing crisis has deepened the cost of living crisis

August 3, 2022

Mind the benefit cap: why families are still falling through our welfare system

June 23, 2022

London housing apartments

Autumn of income shocks: the impact of removing Covid support

August 17, 2021

Two kids looking out the window of a house

Prevention versus cure: How councils can prepare for the end of the eviction ban

May 28, 2021

Local Housing Allowance freeze and homelessness

New analysis: Evidencing the link between the Local Housing Allowance freeze and homelessness

February 5, 2020

Housing First in England

Housing First is welcome but local authorities can do more

January 20, 2020

Photo by Dan Burton on Unsplash to illulstrate homelessness prevention

The true cost of homelessness prevention services in London

October 26, 2019

Let’s make Universal Credit work for vulnerable people

October 24, 2018

Big Issue founder leads Policy in Practice discussion on preventing vulnerability

Big Issue founder leads Policy in Practice discussion on preventing vulnerability

July 23, 2018

The impact of Brexit on low-income households

May 5, 2019

Brexit: What’s next for ESF and local authorities?

July 12, 2016

Thurs 28 April at 10:30. Listen back to hear how smart councils are revolutionising Government’s relationship with data to help implement welfare reform.

How impactful will curbing access to benefits for EU citizens really be?

February 10, 2016

How to give 8,500 Londoners up to £3,700 of unclaimed Pension Credit

March 30, 2023

Image of Welsh flag to illustrate blog post about council tax reduction in Wales

New report: Covid-19 and council tax reduction in Wales

August 19, 2021

Image of London to illustrate blog post on council tax support scheme costs

New analysis: Council tax support scheme costs rise by 16% in London

July 14, 2021

photo of tower blocks in London to illustrate a blog post about the collection of council tax in London

A new approach to the collection of council tax in London

January 27, 2021

Photo image of Newport in Wales to illustrate data led study into the impact of Universal Credit in Wales

Analysis: The impact of Universal Credit in Wales

October 20, 2020

Photo to illustrate a blog post from Policy in Practice about data analysis on financially vulnerable residents in London

New analysis: Who are the most financially vulnerable residents in London?

September 3, 2020

Photo of young child on a London bus to illustrate new research by Policy in Practice on the interaction of COVID-19 measures and the Benefit Cap on low-income Londoners

New analysis: benefit capped households set to double

May 24, 2020

A visit to Glasgow’s Universal Credit Service Centre

August 8, 2018

The Phase Two findings of our Low Income Londoners and welfare reform project looks at how the benefit cap affected Londoners.

How has the Benefit Cap affected Londoners?

March 26, 2018

Guest blogger Jamie Sinclair shares findings from the Deep End Advice Worker project about engaging people on low incomes.

Glasgow’s Deep End Advice Worker project: improving accessibility of advice services

March 22, 2018

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