Next year will see a radical shake up in the benefits and welfare system, as announced by Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Peter Hain.
Over the next four years, changes to the current system of benefits and job-seeking support will be implemented.
The core of the reforms will see hundreds of thousands of people on benefit moving from being passive recipients of cash handouts to job seekers actively seeking and preparing for work, at the heart of a ‘something for something’ welfare system.
Lone Parents on income support who are able to work will be required to actively seek work once their youngest child is 12 or over from October next year, 10 or over form the following year and 7 and over from October 2010.
Mr Hain also announced measures to ease and encourage the transition from welfare to work and a new emphasis on skills support. These include, a skills health check for all new benefit claimants, more childcare provision through the Department for Children Schools and Families extended school programme, and piloting a new ‘better off in work credit,’ which tops up the earnings of those who have been on long-term benefits. Their new weekly in-work income will be at least ?25 a week more than on benefits.
Mr Hain said: “We have made huge progress over the last decade – over 2.8 million more people in work, one million fewer on key out-of-work benefits and 600,000 children lifted out of poverty.
“But a new vision is needed to achieve our goal of full employment in our generation. Today I am setting out how we will make this vision a reality by putting in place a radical shift, treating benefit claimants as active job seekers rather than passive dependents. ?
