welfare reform on watchinga4e.blogspot.com
Watching A4e: "Global leaders in public service reform"
Ltd; global public service reform. (£25,001–£30,000 per financial year) I occasionally travel overseas on behalf of the company."] And in numerous other places they call themselves experts in "welfare reform". It's that word "reform" that bugs me. I believe, perhaps naively, that it's governments which reform such things as public service and welfare benefits. Whoever implements the decisions, it's government which make the decisions. So what reforms have A4e been
Watching A4e: May 2010
issues, including "Jobs and Welfare". This is what it says on that subject: The Government believes that we need to encourage responsibility and fairness in the Welfare system. That means providing help for those who cannot work, training and targeted support for those looking for work, but sanctions for those who turn down reasonable offers of work or training.• We will end all existing Welfare to work programmes and create a single Welfare to work programme to help all
Watching A4e: January 2010
Ltd; global public service reform. (£25,001–£30,000 per financial year) I occasionally travel overseas on behalf of the company."] And in numerous other places they call themselves experts in "welfare reform". It's that word "reform" that bugs me. I believe, perhaps naively, that it's governments which reform such things as public service and welfare benefits. Whoever implements the decisions, it's government which make the decisions. So what reforms have A4e been
Watching A4e: Welfare to Work
2009
Welfare to Work
A4e's core business has always been in contracts to deliver "Welfare to work" programmes, and these have enabled the company to sell itself around the world as "Britain's leading provider. Contracts existed before Labour's election victory in 1997, but the gravy train started with NEW DEAL . A4e's success in winning these contracts baffled competitors and led to suspicions that they were being helped by people in high places
Watching A4e
they have to renegotiate the welfare-to-work contracts. It could be a while before we see any changes.
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"Offer" or "available"
There has been an interesting discussion on the Daily Politics programme about the proposed welfare reforms. It began with a brief clip of Iain Duncan Smith saying that the
http://watchinga4e.blogspot.com/ (85.9kb) 
Watching A4e: July 2009
the Government's plans to reform employment services for Australia's unemployed. A4e had no contracts in Australia at this time ." Now, this same Tom Bentley "worked in Mr Blunkett's ministerial office as a special adviser on school reform and social inclusion " in 1998/99. It's worth reading the whole article. A4e's reputation has travelled, and the Australian press is saying things that the British press daren't.
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02:23
Watching A4e: September 2009
about - you guessed it - welfare to work. At the Labour conference there's a fringe event, ‘Making welfare to Work work in a recession’, at which both Yvette Cooper and Mark Lovell will speak. " A4e and Demos will also be hosting a roundtable centred around this theme with Rt Hon Jim Knight MP, Minister of State for Employment and welfare Reform." If you're thinking that it's a bit much for this company to be in cahoots with ministers - if you think it smacks of touting
Watching A4e: November 2009
to those participating in welfare-to-work programmes" and can be read on the Jobcentre Plus website. It "was developed by ERSA, the representative body for independent providers of publicly funded welfare-to-work programmes and is supported by the Department for Work and Pensions, including Jobcentre Plus, the Association of Learning Providers (ALP) and the British Association for Supported Employment (BASE)" and was launched by Jim Knight MP. All the providers, including A4e, have
Watching A4e: The government's intentions - more information
issues, including "Jobs and Welfare". This is what it says on that subject: The Government believes that we need to encourage responsibility and fairness in the Welfare system. That means providing help for those who cannot work, training and targeted support for those looking for work, but sanctions for those who turn down reasonable offers of work or training.• We will end all existing Welfare to work programmes and create a single Welfare to work programme to help all
Watching A4e: April 2010
to get an objective view of welfare reform; and indeed the report doesn't question the use of private companies. Rob Harvey and Rob Murdoch from A4e have contributed a sensible article on reforming housing benefit;and much of what is in the report is equally sensible. But what is wrong with Demos' whole approach is the acceptance of private profit at the heart of welfare "reform". Have you ever been offered a job? If you're a high-flying, skilled person with a good job you may have
Watching A4e: Going to Conference?
about - you guessed it - welfare to work. At the Labour conference there's a fringe event, ‘Making welfare to Work work in a recession’, at which both Yvette Cooper and Mark Lovell will speak. " A4e and Demos will also be hosting a roundtable centred around this theme with Rt Hon Jim Knight MP, Minister of State for Employment and welfare Reform." If you're thinking that it's a bit much for this company to be in cahoots with ministers - if you think it smacks of touting
Watching A4e: August 2009
like A4E, one of the largest welfare-reform companies in the world" which is being paid to get them back into work. The Doncaster Free Press makes the point that the programme was made a year ago and three of the women are still in work. We also learn what happened to Jacqueline - she's gone into care work. After the programme went out, the Independent's review focussed on Hayley's personality and methods . There's a comment after this article that I hope I will be
Watching A4e: Update - the government's statement
government's statement on Welfare from the BBC website: The parties agree to end all existing Welfare to work programmes and to create a single Welfare to work programme to help all unemployed people get back into work. We agree that Jobseeker's Allowance claimants facing the most significant barriers to work should be referred to the aforementioned newly created Welfare to work programme immediately, not after 12 months as is currently the case. We agree that Jobseeker's
Watching A4e: "Plundering the Public Sector"
government has handed over "reform" in the public sector to a few large companies (Serco among them), who have wreaked havoc through ignorance and incompetence whilst pocketing mind-boggling amounts of our money. Two things struck me in relation to the theme of this blog. The first is that it might provide an explanation for A4e's move to calling themselves experts in "welfare reform". The line between advisers and contractors has dissolved. Emma Harrison boasts of her contacts with
Watching A4e: Bits and pieces
to get an objective view of welfare reform; and indeed the report doesn't question the use of private companies. Rob Harvey and Rob Murdoch from A4e have contributed a sensible article on reforming housing benefit;and much of what is in the report is equally sensible. But what is wrong with Demos' whole approach is the acceptance of private profit at the heart of welfare "reform". Have you ever been offered a job? If you're a high-flying, skilled person with a good job you may have
Watching A4e: February 2010
"progress2work-LinkUP and Welfare Reform Drugs Recovery Pilot" have been published. What is that? There's a partial explanation on the DWP's website. The results here show that A4e have been shortlisted in 11 of the 19 contract areas. So while, as we reported on 19 February, the government is pressing ahead with pilot contracts for integrated "Personalised Employment Programmes" it is persisting, or perhaps not, with specialised provision for those with special needs.
Watching A4e: October 2009
far less well known than its welfare-to-work programmes. It's summarised on the company's own website here and here . The heartland is clearly the Tees Valley, where A4e has the contract for the EBP - Education Business Partnership - run out of the Thornaby Community School. This contract includes the STEMPOINT programme ( see its website ) focussing on science, technology, engineering and maths. So far the media have taken little interest in these activities, because welfare-to-work
Watching A4e: "Joined Up Moving Up"
news page reports: "The Welfare to Work Panel’s report 'Joined Up Moving Up' was launched today at a well attended and successful event in Central Westminster Hall. The Welfare to Work Panel’s report 'Joined Up Moving Up' was launched today at a well attended and successful event in Central Westminster Hall. Employment Minister Jim Knight spoke alongside panel chair Keith Faulkner from Working Links, Rob Murdoch from A4e, Chris Ledgard from Collinson Grant and CBI Director of
Watching A4e: Benefit Busters, episode 1
of the the so-called welfare state reforms, not the clients of the New Deal and all these other crackpot schemes.If you ask me, the lunatics have taken over the aslylum, and what a lucrative one it is for some.
21 August 2009 02:25
imatt
said...
Anon, errr...have you noticed the title of this site - Watching A4e? The clue is in the title, hence the 'unhealthy obsession' with A4e. As for discrediting A4e, they do a rather good job of that
Watching A4e: Some recent blog posts
the Government's plans to reform employment services for Australia's unemployed. A4e had no contracts in Australia at this time ." Now, this same Tom Bentley "worked in Mr Blunkett's ministerial office as a special adviser on school reform and social inclusion " in 1998/99. It's worth reading the whole article. A4e's reputation has travelled, and the Australian press is saying things that the British press daren't.
Posted by
historian
at
02:23
Watching A4e: Press Release on Poverty
The time for piecemeal reform has ended. There has never been a more pressing need for fundamental radical reform and we will waste no time in acting." There is little that one could disagree with there. But what it will mean in practice is not yet clear. What are "initiatives that work"? Dare we suppose that IDS has twigged that current provision doesn't work? What role have the private companies played already in shaping the "fundamental radical reform"?
Watching A4e: Playing with figures
in a newspaper recently that welfare was costing £3.2 million per day (=£1.139 billion per annum). This figure obviously conflicts with the claim that welfare is costing £61bn pa. Which are the correct figures?
26 August 2009 00:50
Anonymous
said...
My mistake - the 3.2 million is the number employed - please don't approve the previous or this comment!
26 August 2009 00:52
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Keep it clean, please. No
Watching A4e: Publicity - lots of it
by 2010, and is the largest welfare reform company in the world. A4E is run by multimillionaire entrepreneur Emma Harrison, who believes her business is 'improving people's lives by getting them into work.' Until recently, the 700,000 lone parents receiving benefit didn't have to look for work until their youngest child was 16. Soon, they must either work, or be looking for work, once their youngest child is seven. At Doncaster A4E, Hayley runs a course called Elevate that aims to give lone
Watching A4e: March 2010
preparing a programme about welfare reform and New Deal. They would like to hear views (good and bad) from New Deal and FND clients . Here's what they say: "We are researching a programme for BBC Radio 4 and we want to hear from clients who have been on New Deal or Flexible New Deal back to work courses within the last year. What has been your personal experience? Has the course lived up to your expectation? Please email : Kate.O'Hara@bbc.co.uk or text, or phone on 07834 846
Watching A4e: The Curious Tale of the CLAC Annual Report
ago
DWP on welfare reform
Lady Judge appointed Chair of Pension Protection fund - DWP
1 month ago
Emma Harrison - a version of her story
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Watching A4e: India, Cambridge and the bank
as well as fighting the Welfare Reform Act" were picketing A4e's Cambridge offices last week. And the bank. You may remember that last year A4e set up a company called Capitec UK Ltd to be a bank for poor people. See here . (The relationship with the South African bank, Capitec, is unclear.) Presumably that £1m grant was never handed over, because the company remains dormant; and, incidentally, the body which made the award has since been disbanded.
Watching A4e: An Open Letter to Iain Duncan Smith
on poverty, jobs and welfare reform, and few would disagree with your diagnosis of the problems in this area. However, as someone with personal experience of, and concerns about, the ways in which such problems have been tackled in the past, I want to ask you to avoid the mistakes which have brought this situation about . Please resist the advice to roll up all the necessary actions into one large contract to be sold to the highest bidder. I know you will use private
Watching A4e: Don't mention New Deal
Yvette Cooper about the new Welfare Reform Bill. I waited, naturally, for any mention of the New Deal or Jobcentre Support contracts, but all we got were a couple of cliches about how the Bill was "to take forward more support" for people looking for work and, "We're a society that cares for people." Either the omission was deliberate, or it reflected the irrelevance of these hugely expensive contracts. This morning the Guardian reports the results of a survey by the Federation of Small
Watching A4e: "Offer" or "available"
programme about the proposed welfare reforms. It began with a brief clip of Iain Duncan Smith saying that the unemployed should take what work is available or face sanctions. Those of us with an interest in these matters recognise that this is a significant change. It could force people to, for instance, sign up with agencies for casual work simply because the agencies are prepared to take them on. Andrew Neil, whose knowledge is inferior to his pretensions, confused this with refusing a
Watching A4e: A Brief History of Welfare-to-Work
as Workfare) are subject to Welfare Reform Bill.
28 October 2009 15:01
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