Research Projects

Now It’s Personal: citizen-centred welfare

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Contact Email: c.mcneil@ippr.org

Introduction

There is an urgent need to create a more responsive, personalised and effective welfare system which is built around citizens’ needs. ippr is exploring how welfare policy can achieve the goal of providing personalised support and what steps need to be taken to reduce inactivity in the long-term. This project is exploring solutions through a programme of action research with delivery partners in the public, private and voluntary sectors.

ippr is leading the way in developing ideas around the welfare system and personal advisers working on the frontline can provide a personalised and holistic support service. The project is considering the relationship between adviser and service user, examining ‘what works’ for responsive and effective support.

ippr is working alongside eight partners in the welfare to work sector to test and evaluate different approaches to the adviser role and the personalisation of welfare to work support. Our partners are Brent in2work, Islington Council, Peabody, Pinnacle, Skills Development Scotland, Stockwell Community Resource Centre – with Hyde Housing, Working Links and the UK Commission for Employment and Skills and Working Links.

A best practice ‘hub’ is running alongside the action research with a programme of stimulating seminars and events on key issues. Drawing on research from the frontline of helping people back into work across the UK, the project is challenging key assumptions on which current policy on welfare reform is based. A final report will be published later in 2010.

Events

Now It's Personal? The New Landscape of Welfare to Work

16 September 2010 - London, 9am-11am
The last event in the hub seminar series will launch the publication of the project's final report, Now It's Personal? The New Landscape of Welfare to Work.

Citizen-centred welfare New York City Learning Exchange
14 - 18 June 2010
As part of this innovative project, ippr offered the opportunity for policy-makers and practitioners to visit New York City to facilitate learning and exchange of best practice between US and UK providers, advisers and policy makers. Read more.

Devolution, employment and skills: the role of personal advisers in a devolved context
10 June 2010
This event explored the different approaches to integrating employment and skills in England, Scotland and Wales. Read more and view presentations.

The Adviser in the International Context: Where next for personalisation?
19 March 2010
ippr brought together a range of speakers with experience from different countries and with different perspectives to discuss the role of the adviser in the international context. Read more, view presenations and download recordings. Seminar briefing (.pdf)

Roundtable: Personal Budgets in Employment and Skills
21 October 2009
There is widespread interest in extending the successful individual budgets concept from social care into public services more widely to create more user-led services and transform the relationship between citizen and state. But could this approach work in the welfare system and if so, how can it be taken forward? Recordings available.
Files: Event summary (.pdf) | Personalisation and Employment - Dr Simon Duffy (.ppt)

Personal Advisers: The emerging role in employment and skills
23 June 2009
Following the publication of ippr’s report Now It’s Personal: Personal Advisers and the new public service workforce, this seminar looked at the relationships between welfare to work providers and skills and training providers. Event summary available.

Publications

Now It’s Personal: Learning from welfare-to-work approaches around the world

Personalisation – tailored support offered to help people (back) into work – has become a dominant feature of many welfare regimes around the world. The role of the personal adviser is an important aspect of offering more flexible, tailored support into work. While the language may differ from country to country, the challenges that many governments face, such as reducing their welfare bills and improving cost effectiveness, are similar, as is the move towards a focus on getting people into decent jobs that they then retain. This collection of short essays draws on international experiences and approaches of personalisation. It focuses on the role of the personal adviser as a way to explore how policy can reach its goal of providing personalised employment support and advice.

view publication

Now It’s Personal:
Personal advisers and the new public service workforce

This report gives shape to the argument that the next focus of public sector reform should be on the relationship between the citizen and frontline staff in public services. It does so by focusing on what matters in the relationship between citizen and the state on the frontline of public services.

view publication