Work and Health Programme statistics to May 2024

Question 1

1.  Introduction

Accepted Answer

The Work and Health Programme (WHP) was launched in England and Wales between November 2017 and April 2018 to help the following groups of people:

Disability group – voluntary for disabled people as defined in the Equality Act (2010). This is the main group that the WHP is aimed at
Early Access group – voluntary and aimed at people who may need support to move into employment and are in one of a number of priority groups (for example homeless, ex-armed forces, care leavers, refugees)
Long-term Unemployed group – mandatory for Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) or Universal Credit (UC) claimants who have reached 24 months of unemployment. Note: referrals to the WHP LTU group are only available between April 2018 and October 2022

The WHP is delivered by 5 providers across 6 areas, known as Contract Package Areas (CPAs). In some CPAs, the government has designed the WHP in consultation with Local Enterprise Partnerships and city regions (partnerships between local authorities and businesses). These are known as Devolved Deal Areas (DDA). In London and Greater Manchester, where devolution deals are in place, the WHP is commissioned and contract managed by the local authorities, known as Local Government Partners (LGPs), who are match-funded by the European Social Fund (ESF).

People are referred by jobcentres to work with organisations known as providers from the public, private and voluntary sectors. Providers are paid a service delivery fee as well as outcome-related payments when a person receives a job outcome.

The WHP was originally scheduled to stop taking all referrals at the end of October 2022. However, the Department for Work & Pensions has extended referrals for the Disability and Early Access Groups from November 2022 to September 2024 and have agreed with providers and Local Government Partners to provide support for around 100,000 more people, most of whom will be disabled.

Up until the end of October 2022, the WHP was part funded as a European Union funded project as part of the European Social Fund (ESF) 2014 to 2020. From 1 November 2022, the funding from the ESF stopped and the WHP is now funded through Treasury funding for the national CPAs and grant funded for the LGPs.

This publication includes WHP statistics in sections 4 to 7 and WHP Pioneer statistics in sections 8, 9 and 10.

Question 2

2.  Main Stories

Accepted Answer

The statistics show:

between November 2017 and May 2024, 480,000 individuals have been referred to the programme with 330,000 having started on the WHP
of the number of participants who started on the WHP between November 2017 and May 2022 (the most recent point by which participants would have had the full 24 months on the programme), 46% achieved first earnings from employment and 31% achieved a job outcome within 24 months
in the last three months, the performance levels of the WHP (actual divided by expected number of job outcomes) were 95% (March 2024), 61% (April 2024) and 75% (May 2024). Please note the last month is for Disability and Early Access groups only. See expectations for more information on how these figures are calculated
between September 2023 and May 2024, 17,000 individuals have been referred to WHP Pioneer, with 11,000 starting on the programme
between September 2023 and May 2024 1,700 participants on WHP Pioneer have achieved first earnings from employment and 290 have achieved a job outcome

Question 3

3.  What you need to know

Accepted Answer

The WHP statistics cover 6 different measures:

Referrals: Work coaches in jobcentres will send details of a person wanting to join the WHP to a provider. Individuals can be referred more than once if they do not start. Figures presented in this publication do not include cancelled or rejected referrals
Individuals referred: Since one individual can have multiple referrals, individuals referred is the number of individual people referred. This means only the first referral per person is counted
Starts: A start on the programme is recorded when a WHP participant attends the initial face-to-face meeting with the provider. Most starts should take place within 15 working days, although starts outside this window may occur if the customer does not attend the initial meeting within this time frame
First earnings from employment: The point at which a participant achieves their first earnings from their first employment whilst on the programme. A participant may not necessarily go on to achieve a job outcome. Statistics on first earnings from employment do not include earnings from self-employment
Job outcomes: A provider is classed as achieving a job outcome when a participant reaches either a specified level of earnings once in employment (which varies across the different areas – (see the background information note for details) or 6 months of being in self-employment
Performance expectations: Job outcome estimates derived by DWP prior to the programme start

Statistics on referrals, individuals referred, starts, first earnings from employment, and the headline figure for job outcomes are currently available for WHP Pioneer.

Timeline of the roll out of the WHP from November 2017 to May 2024

Referrals to the Early Access and Disability groups began in November 2017. In March 2018 the WHP became available to all areas of the country. LTU referrals began in April 2018 and were suspended at the end of October 2022.

During the UK-wide lockdowns, beginning in March 2020, the face-to-face delivery of the WHP by providers was suspended. This meant that providers took alternative routes to service delivery including digital options and providing a telephony service to ensure support continued. Face to face delivery resumed for WHP participants as government Covid-19 guidance allowed and is now the primary method of delivery.

WHP Pioneer began taking referrals on 13 September 2023. The introduction of WHP Pioneer means there may be changes in the numbers and demographic of people being referred to WHP, which is a continuation of the existing programme. This is because some people who would have been referred to WHP have instead been referred to WHP Pioneer.

Provider context

There are key contextual differences to consider between providers and LGPs. Participants must earn above a fixed threshold to achieve a job outcome through any provider nationally or in an LGP area. However, the thresholds used by the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) and West London Alliance are greater than those used by other LGPs and by the national providers of the WHP. LGPs, as solely urban areas, have different demographics to CPAs. Therefore, the demographics of eligible cohorts may be different to those of the national CPAs. LGP services started about four months after the national CPAs.

Before the WHP extension, LGPs secured extra funding from the ESF to increase participant numbers, whilst national WHP providers did not. Actual job availability in different areas does not necessarily scale in line with the increase in participant numbers. As a result, comparisons between regions and providers should be made with great care and the contextual differences between CPAs and LGPs should be considered, for example there are differences between the outcome definitions used. More detail explaining these principles, their effects and other important contextual information may be found in our background information note.

Question 4

4.  Joining the Work and Health Programme

Accepted Answer

Since the start of WHP, across England and Wales, there have been a total of:

570,000 referrals
480,000 individuals referred
330,000 starts on the programme

In the most recent month, there have been 5,800 individuals referred to WHP and 4,400 starts

Monthly number of individuals referred and starts to WHP, November 2017 to May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Referrals to WHP - Individuals, and Starts to WHP.

Note: Both the individuals referred and starts measures above are calculated using the month in which referral or start was achieved so caution should be used in direct comparisons between both metrics.

Please note that referrals to WHP Pioneer began 13 September 2023, which may have impacted referrals, individual referrals and starts to WHP. Pioneer data are not included in this graph. For more information on the limitations of this chart, see our background information note.

The total number of monthly individual referrals and starts was on an upward trend from March 2018 (when the programme was available to all areas of the country). From April 2019 both the number of monthly individual referrals and starts were on a downwards trend, before the impact of the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and the first UK-wide lockdown was seen in March 2020. They hit their lowest levels in April and May 2020 and rose to their respective all-time highs in June 2021 and March 2021. Since then, despite notable monthly variation, levels have remained below these peaks with 5,800 individuals referred and 4,400 starts in the most recent month (May 2024).

Across the whole lifespan of the programme, the proportion of individuals referred that have started is 68%. There are several reasons why an individual may not have started on the programme. For those referrals that have happened more recently, this could be because of the time required to process a start or because participants have not yet attended their initial meeting with the provider. There is a strict, contractual Service Level Agreement (SLA) of 15 days for a participant to start on programme. However, for referrals which happened longer ago, the individual may never have gone on to start. This could be because the participant found work before starting on the programme or have not worked with the provider to attend a welcome meeting within the 15-day SLA period.

Since the suspension of LTU referrals in November 2022, on average over three quarters of starts are within the Disability eligibility group

Starts to WHP by month the participant was referred and eligibility group, November 2017 to May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Starts to WHP.

Please note that referrals to WHP Pioneer began 13 September 2023, which may have impacted referrals, individual referrals and starts to WHP. Pioneer data are not included in this graph.

Of the individuals referred to the WHP since it began in November 2017 to October 2022 who have started; 188,000 were from the Disability group (77%), 29,000 were in the Early Access group (12%) and 27,000 were in the LTU group (11%). Since the extension of the programme and the suspension of LTU referrals, starting from 1 November 2022, 66,000 are from the Disability group (77%) and 20,000 are from the Early Access group (23%).

Since the programme began until June 2019, the proportion of starts was falling for the Disability eligibility group and rising for the LTU Group. This trend reversed up until the impact of COVID-19 was seen on the programme, where most starts were in the Disability and Early Access groups.

Wales currently has the highest proportion of individuals referred who have started on the WHP

Proportion of all individuals referred who have started on the WHP broken down by area, November 2017 to May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Referrals to WHP - Individuals and Starts to WHP.

Please note that referrals to WHP Pioneer began 13 September 2023, which may have impacted referrals, individual referrals and starts to WHP. Pioneer data are not included in this graph. For more information on the limitations of this chart, see our background information note.

The actual number of referrals and starts varies across areas due to size and when the service rolled out. To date, the highest proportion of individuals referred who have started is in Wales (76%) and the lowest is in West London (58%). Comparisons between regions and providers should be made with great care and the contextual differences between CPAs and LGPs should be considered.

Question 5

5.  First earnings from employment and job outcomes from the Work and Health Programme

Accepted Answer

31% of participants who started on the WHP achieved a job outcome within 24 months

The flow of participants referred to the WHP up to May 2022

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Referrals to WHP – Individuals, Starts to WHP, Employment First Earnings from WHP and Job Outcomes from WHP.

Of the 330,000 individuals who were referred to the WHP by May 2022 (the most recent point by which participants would have had the full 24 months on the programme), 68% started. Subsequently, of the individuals who started, 46% achieved first earnings from employment within 24 months and 31% achieved a job outcome within 24 months. Please note, statistics on first earnings from employment do not include earnings from self-employment. Referrals after May 2022 are not included as participants have not had the full duration in which to achieve first earnings or a job outcome.

Following a period of gradual increase from February 2023 to December 2023, job outcomes have fallen to 1,200 in the most recent month

Number of participants achieving first earnings from employment and job outcomes on WHP by month in which they occurred, November 2017 to May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP)

Note:

both the first earnings from employment and job outcome measures above are shown by the month in which they were achieved. Participants who have had both may appear at different points in the chart so caution should be used in direct monthly comparisons between both metrics
a seasonal effect is seen in the first earnings data, where the number of participants achieving first earnings from employment decrease during the winter months each year
first earnings from employment and job outcomes are not directly comparable as job outcome figures include those who are self-employed while the first earnings figures do not. Support to participants on the programme ends after 21 months and time to accumulate earnings to achieve a job outcome finishes at 24 months

Across the entire programme (November 2017 to May 2024), 89,000 participants have reached the job outcome earnings threshold or 6 months of being in self-employment. The highest number of job outcomes achieved in a single month was 2,500 in October 2021. Following this, job outcomes gradually fell to 1,300 in February 2023, after which there was an increase to 1,800 in December 2023. Since then, job outcomes decreased to 1,200 in May 2024, which is the most recent month available. Please note that cohorts that have not had the full duration in which to achieve a job outcome, i.e., those who started later than May 2022, are included in these figures to give an indication of all job outcomes that have been achieved to date. Participants starting on the programme more recently will have had less time to achieve a job outcome and may proceed to do so later.

The number of first earnings in a single month reached an all-time high of 3,800 in May 2021 and remained high until November 2021. There are notable seasonal highs and lows in First Earnings. For example, there were three notable sharp declines to low points in January 2022, January 2023 and January 2024. To date, 140,000 participants have achieved first earnings from employment with 2,400 of these being achieved in the most recent month (May 2024).

The 12-month and 24-month measures for job outcomes and first earnings from employment reached a peak in January 2021

Percentage of starts resulting in first earnings from employment and job outcomes within 12 months (December 2017 to May 2023) and 24 months (December 2017 to May 2022) of starting, by starting month on WHP

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Starts to WHP and Employment First Earnings from WHP.

The percentage of participants achieving first earnings from employment and job outcomes within 12 and 24 months of starting on the programme had been on a slight decline since the programme began until the COVID-19 pandemic (March 2020). For participants starting since April 2020, there was a rapid increase in the percentage achieving first earnings from employment and job outcomes for both time measures.

For first earnings from employment, the 12-month measure reached a peak of 53% in January 2021 and gradually declined until November 2021. Since then, the 12-month measure has shown an overall increase to 43% in May 2023. The 24-month measure reached a peak of 63% in January 2021 and then declined until December 2021. Since then the 24 month measure has stabilised and is 45% in May 2022 which is the most recent month available.

For job outcomes, the 12-month measure reached a peak of 32% in January 2021 and gradually declined until December 2021. Since then job outcomes gradually increased overall to 23% in the most recent month (May 2023). The 24-month measure reached a peak of 48% in January 2021 and then declined until December 2021. Since then the 24 month measure has stabilised and is 30% in the most recent month available (May 2022).

Please note, for participants who have achieved first earnings from employment and/or a job outcome:

the 12-month measure includes participants who started between November 2017 to May 2023
the 24-month measure includes participants who started between November 2017 to May 2022. Whilst the 24-month measure is the key long-term measure, it is the least timely as we can only measure it for cohorts that started up to and including May 2022

Participants starting after May 2023 (12-month measure) and May 2022 (24-month measure) have not had the full duration in which to achieve first earnings or a job outcome and are therefore not included in each respective measure, due to the data being incomplete. This means a portion of participants counted in the 12-month measure will not be counted in the 24-month measure (those who started and received a job outcome between May 2022 and May 2023). For this reason, the two measures will include different cohorts of participants meaning they should be considered individually.

For each of the 12 and 24 month measures the early access group has the highest percentage of starts achieving first earnings and job outcomes.

Percentage of starts resulting in first earnings from employment and job outcomes within 12 months (November 2017 to May 2023) and 24 months (November 2017 to May 2022) of starting, by eligibility group on WHP

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Starts to WHP and Employment First Earnings from WHP.

Please note that referrals to the LTU group ceased from 31 October 2022, therefore the 12 month First Earnings and Job Outcome measures for the LTU group are now static.

The percentage of starts achieving first earnings from employment and job outcomes increases for all eligibility groups as time on the programme increases. For first earnings from employment, the figures rise for:

the Disability group, from 39% within 12 months to 47% within 24 months of starting on the programme
the Early Access group, from 42% within 12 months to 49% within 24 months of starting on the programme
the LTU group, from 27% within 12 months to 33% within 24 months of starting on the programme

For job outcomes, the figures rise for

the Disability group, from 21% within 12 months to 32% within 24 months of starting on the programme
the Early Access group, from 25% within 12 months to 35% within 24 months of starting on the programme
the LTU group, from 12% within 12 months to 20% within 24 months of starting on the programme

30% of participants who started in May 2022 achieved a job outcome

The percentage of all participants starting in each month that have proceeded to achieve a job outcome on WHP within 24 months by eligibility groups, December 2017 to May 2022

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Job Outcomes from WHP.

For participants within the Disability group the proportion achieving job outcomes within 24 months more than doubled following the immediate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic (between April and May 2020) and continued to gradually rise in the following months, until September 2020. In the latest month (May 2022), 30% of all participants who started achieved a job outcome. This is composed of 25% in the disability group, 5% in the Early Access group, and 1% in the LTU group. Note: eligibility group percentages are calculated by taking the total number of job outcomes achieved in each month within each eligibility group and dividing this by the total number of starts in each month.

Any information that uses the start date of the participant is not given past May 2022 in this section as participants have not had the full 24-month period, after their start date, within which to reach the first earnings threshold or achieve a job outcome. Those who started up to and including May 2022 have been on the programme for longer and have received more support making job outcomes more likely.

Participants leave the programme by either:

achieving a job outcome
being on the programme for a full 21 months

Note: although support on the programme ends at 21 months the time to accumulate earnings to achieve a job outcome finishes at 24 months.

Data displayed to May 2024 relate to job outcome month rather than participant start date.

Question 6

6.  Demographics of the Work and Health Programme

Accepted Answer

Different job outcome rates seen for the various participant groups do not reflect the relative success of the programme for each group. There are many reasons why these can vary and, as a result, comparisons between job outcome rates of groups should be made with great care. See the background information note for more information.

The proportion of job outcomes within 24 months of starting is highest for females in the Early Access group

Percentage of starts achieving job outcomes on WHP within 24 months for females and males, and by eligibility group, November 2017 to May 2022

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Starts to WHP and Job Outcomes from WHP.

Of the total number of starts to the programme, 60% are male and 40% are female. Overall, the rate of job outcomes achieved within 24 months of starting is similar (30% of males and 31% of females). In the Disability group, 32% of males and females have achieved a job outcome in 24 months. In the Early Access group, 33% of males and 37% of females have achieved a job outcome in 24 months. In the LTU group, 19% of males and 20% of females have achieved a job outcome in 24 months.

The highest proportion of job outcomes within 24 months of starting the programme are achieved by 18-24 year-olds, with Wales being the highest performing region

Percentage of starts achieving job outcomes on WHP within 24 months, by region and age group at the point of referral, November 2017 to May 2022

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme (WHP), Starts to WHP and Job Outcomes from WHP.

Across the age groups the percentage of participants who have started on the WHP and have achieved a job outcome within 24 months is lowest for the 60+ age group at 20% and increases as the age groups decrease, to a high of 40% for the 18 to 24 age group. Please note age is calculated at the point of referral.

The percentage of participants who have started on the WHP and have achieved a job outcome within 24 months varies by region and is lowest for Local London (Maximus) at 26% and highest for Wales (Maximus) at 36%.

Question 7

7.  Performance levels

Accepted Answer

Expectations

The expectations used in the WHP statistics are the expected number of job outcomes for the programme, either as a whole, split by eligibility groups or split by providers. Users can interpret these as the number of job outcomes anticipated when the WHP was rolled out. These are based upon pre-programme expectations which were drawn up by DWP as the performance expectation for the programme when it was designed. When pre-extension referrals ceased at the end of October 2022 it was agreed subsequent cohorts would be assessed against a new contractual profile based upon, although not identical to, DWP’s pre-programme expectation.

Please note that all figures for this release use the pre-programme expectations. For more information on the background to these expectations and to understand how they were created, see our background information note.

In the most recent two months, overall performance has decreased below 80%

Actual job outcomes as a proportion of expected job outcomes, overall and for each eligibility group, by outcome month for September 2018 to May 2024 for WHP

Source: WHP statistics data tables.

Note:

the dashed orange line at 100% signifies where actual job outcomes equal the expected number of job outcomes
since January 2021, LTU group outcomes have been below 100 for each month. LTU referrals were suspended on 31 October 2022 and as such, low numbers of participants from this group remain on the programme. From January to April 2024 there are fewer than 15 job outcomes in each month within the LTU group. These low numbers mean small changes in volumes can result in notable changes in percentages
in May 2024 there were fewer than 5 job outcomes in the LTU group and so the LTU group has been removed from this figure. LTU group job outcomes and expectations are also no longer included in the overall job outcomes performance from May 2024

Nationally, overall performance of actual job outcomes against expected job outcomes has fluctuated between 49% (September 2020) and 156% (October 2021) across the period September 2018 to May 2024. In the most recent month available (May 2024), the overall performance was 75%. This indicates that, across the available cohorts of Early Access and Disability groups, the actual number of job outcomes for May 2024 was 75% of the expected number of job outcomes for this month.

The three eligibility groups had performed similarly up to September 2020. This suggests that the WHP was achieving a similar proportion of expected outcomes for each eligibility group. From September 2020 to January 2021, the performance of the Disability and Early Access groups rapidly increased to meet expected performance levels. Another increase in performance levels of these groups was observed between June 2021 and the all-time high seen in October 2021 (160% for the Disability group and 158% for the early access group). The overall performance of the Disability and Early Access groups returned to and fluctuated around expected levels from February 2022. In the most recent month, performance levels were at 76% for the Disability group and 70% for the Early Access Group.

The LTU group followed a similar trend from June 2021, rising to around or above expectations for most months between October 2021 and July 2022. From August 2022, a large decrease in performance for the LTU group was seen, dropping as low as 40% (August 2023 and January 2024). Since then performance has remained low and the LTU group was removed from this time series in May 2024 - see note above.

The expected number of job outcomes were defined before the COVID-19 pandemic began. They are calculated using a few measures including the number of starts to the programme and the proportion of these that are expected, in each time period, to achieve a job outcome. The reduction in performance in the affected months should be considered in this context. For more information see our background information note.

Overall and in the most recent 12 months (June 2023 – May 2024), actual job outcomes as a proportion of expected job outcomes are highest in Wales

Job outcome performance against expectations, overall and for the latest 12 months, split by region (and provider) for WHP

Source: WHP statistics data tables.

Please note that referrals to WHP Pioneer began 13 September 2023. Pioneer data are not included in this graph.

Across all regions and providers, overall performance of actual job outcomes ranges between 79% (Local London, Maximus) and 109% (Wales, Maximus) of the expected number of outcomes, when summed across the period September 2018 to May 2024. In the last 12 months (between June 2023 and May 2024), the number of actual job outcomes ranges between 81% (Local London, Maximus, and South London Partnership, Reed in Partnership) and 107% (Wales, Maximus) of the expected number of outcomes. Note that these figures include all participants who have started the programme to date. Those who have started more recently have not had as much time to achieve job outcomes and may still go on to do so.

Comparisons between regions and providers should be made with great care and the contextual differences between CPAs and LGPs should be considered.

Question 8

8.  Joining Work and Health Programme Pioneer

Accepted Answer

WHP Pioneer started taking referrals 13 September 2023. All statistics below this point refer to WHP Pioneer.

Since the start of WHP Pioneer, across England and Wales, there have been a total of:

18,000 referrals
17,000 individuals referred
11,000 starts on the programme

67% of individuals referred to WHP Pioneer go on to start the programme

The flow of participants referred to WHP Pioneer up to May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme Pioneer (WHP Pioneer), Referrals to WHP Pioneer – Individuals and Starts to WHP Pioneer.

Note that, due to the short time for which WHP Pioneer has been running, this figure shows the individual referrals and starts to WHP Pioneer to date, while the figure for the core Work and Health Programme uses the 24-month measures for the full participant journey from referral to job outcome. Outcome measures will be added to this figure once sufficient data is available.

There has been an overall increase for both referrals and starts since WHP Pioneer began

Monthly number of individuals referred to WHP Pioneer and starts, September 2023 to end of May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme Pioneer (WHP Pioneer), Referrals to WHP Pioneer – Individuals and Starts to WHP Pioneer.

Note: Data shown for September 2023 only includes data from the 13th when the programme began. Both the individuals referred and starts measures above are calculated using the month in which referral or start was achieved so caution should be used in direct comparisons between both metrics.

Since the programme began, the proportion of individuals referred that have started is 67%. There are several reasons why an individual may not have started on the programme. For those referrals that have happened more recently, this could be because of the time required to process a start or because participants have not yet attended their initial meeting with the provider. There is a strict, contractual Service Level Agreement (SLA) of 15 days for a participant to start on programme. However, for referrals which happened longer ago, the individual may never have gone on to start. This could be because the participant found work before starting on the programme or have not worked with the provider to attend a welcome meeting within the 15-day SLA period.

There has been an overall increase for both referrals and starts since the programme began.

Of the number of individuals starting on WHP Pioneer since it began in September 2023 to May 2024; 8,900 were from the Disability group (80%) and 2,300 were in the Early Access group (20%).

Greater Manchester Combined Authority has the highest proportion of individuals referred who have started on WHP Pioneer

Proportion of all individuals referred to WHP Pioneer who have started on WHP Pioneer broken down by area, 13 September 2023 to end of May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme Pioneer (WHP Pioneer), Referrals to WHP Pioneer - Individuals and Starts to WHP Pioneer.

To date, the North East region has the highest number of referrals who have started (2,800). The highest proportion of individuals referred who have started is in Greater Manchester (82%) and the lowest is in the Home Counties and the Southern regions (62%). Comparisons between regions and providers should be made with great care and the contextual differences between CPAs and LGPs should be considered.

Across all providers, at least 65% of those starting on WHP Pioneer are in the Disability group

Proportion of individuals who started on WHP Pioneer, by eligibility group and broken down by region (and provider), September 2023 to end of May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme Pioneer (WHP Pioneer), Starts to WHP Pioneer.

South London has the highest proportion of starts from the Disability Group (88%). Conversely, Central London has the lowest (65%). Comparisons between regions and providers should be made with great care and the contextual differences between CPAs and LGPs should be considered.

Question 9

9.  First earnings from employment and job outcomes from Work and Health Programme Pioneer

Accepted Answer

Since September 2023 to the most recent month (May 2024) for WHP Pioneer there have been

1,700 first earnings from employment
290 job outcomes

Note that as data for WHP Pioneer is only available for 9 months, few participants have had sufficient time on the programme within that time period to achieve a job outcome. Please see Section 3 in the Background Information and Methodology document for more information on how job outcomes are calculated.

Since September 2023 there has been an overall increase in first earnings from employment

Number of participants achieving first earnings from employment in WHP Pioneer by month in which they occurred, September 2023 to May 2024

Since September 2023 there has been an overall increase in first earnings from employment with plateaus between December 2023 and January 2024 and between March 2024 and April 2024. 500 participants received first earnings in the most recent month (May 2024).

26% of individuals within the disability group and 28% of individuals within the early access group have achieved first earnings from employment within 6 months of starting on WHP Pioneer. This measure includes participants who started on WHP Pioneer up to and including November 2023.

Question 10

10.  Demographics of Work and Health Programme Pioneer

Accepted Answer

Of the total number of starts to the programme, 5,800 are male (52%) and 5,400 are female (48%).

The 18-24 age group that contains the highest amount of starts on WHP Pioneer

Number of individuals who started on WHP Pioneer, by age group (at point of referral), 13 September 2023 to end of May 2024

Source: Stat-Xplore, Work and Health Programme Pioneer (WHP Pioneer), Starts to WHP Pioneer.

Across the age groups the number of starts on WHP Pioneer is lowest for the 60+ age group at 900 and is highest for the 18-24 age group at 2000. Please note age is calculated at the point of referral.

Question 11

11.  About these statistics

Accepted Answer

This statistical summary gives an overview. Key points and trends are presented using charts and commentary. The information underlying the charts is available on Stat-Xplore and as supporting tables.

Rounding

Volumes and amounts have been rounded as detailed in the background information note. Percentages are calculated using numbers prior to disclosure controls and/or rounding, and are rounded to the nearest whole percentage point. For these reasons, some totals may not sum to 100.

Status

The statistics in this bulletin are classified as Official Statistics. The Statistics and Registration Service Act 2007 defines ‘Official Statistics’ as all those statistical outputs produced by the UK Statistics Authority’s executive office (the Office for National Statistics), by central Government departments and agencies, by the devolved administrations in Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales, and by other Crown bodies (over 200 bodies in total).

Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics. The Code encourages and supports producers of statistics to maintain their independence and to ensure adequate resourcing for statistical production. It helps producers and users of statistics by setting out the necessary principles and practices to produce statistics that are trustworthy, high quality and of public value.

You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments epass.team@dwp.gov.uk about how we meet these standards.

Alternatively, you can contact OSR by email regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the Office for Statistics Regulation website

How can this data be used?

You can use this data:

for monitoring the overall flow of participants being referred to and starting on the WHP, those achieving first earnings and job outcomes
for monitoring the differences in demographics of programme participants for age group, eligibility group, area, and whether male or female

You cannot use this data:

for making simple comparisons between different demographic groups (age group, eligibility group, area, and whether male or female) in terms of the success of the programme

Changes, revisions and known issues

Following the introduction of WHP Pioneer on the 13 September 2023 there may be changes in the numbers and demographic of people being referred to WHP from that point onwards, this is because some people who would have been referred to WHP have instead been referred to WHP Pioneer. The introduction of WHP Pioneer and subsequent promotion of the programme may also have increased awareness of WHP. This will impact the numbers of referrals, individuals referred, and starts to WHP in this release.

Where to find out more

Read the WHP background information note for more information about the statistics.

The Work and Health Programme provider guidance is used by programme providers.

Information on the Work Programme, a programme which aimed to get unemployed people into sustained employment can be found in the collection of Work Programme statistics.

Information on Work Choice, a programme which aimed to help disabled people find, keep and progress in a job, can be found in the collection of Work Choice statistics.

Information on Specialist Employability Support, a voluntary programme which is aimed at helping disabled people with complex barriers that other support is not suitable for to find a job, can be found in the collection of Specialist Employability Support statistics.

Information on the Access to Work provision, which is aimed to support people who have a disability or long-term health condition start or stay in work, can be found in the collection of Access to Work statistics.

Users can also produce their own tables and access demographic breakdowns using Stat-Xplore.

Question 12

12.  Future plans and your feedback

Accepted Answer

Expected changes in future releases

As part of our planned ongoing development of the WHP Official Statistics, some changes may be made to the publication in future releases. We will pre-announce all major changes to users.

In September 2023, the Work and Health Programme was expanded to include a new element called WHP Pioneer. Pioneer is aimed at economically inactive customers who have a disability or who are in the Early Access group, in finding sustained work through a support model that has elements of a place and train type approach.

Since the May 2024 release this publication has included statistics on referrals, individual referrals, and starts on WHP Pioneer. The most recent release (published 29 August 2024) also includes figures on first earnings from employment and a headline figure for job outcomes from WHP Pioneer. More detailed breakdowns of these will be made available in future publications when data is available.

Feedback and queries

Authors: Sophie Buckland, Daniel O’Hagan and Ewan Straiton

Lead Statistician: Tracy Hills

If you have any queries or feedback about existing WHP Official Statistics, or the changes proposed above, please email epass.team@dwp.gov.uk.

For media enquiries on these statistics, please contact the DWP press office.

DWP would like to hear your views on our statistical publications. If you use any of our statistics publications, we would be interested in hearing what you use them for and how well they meet your requirements. Please send your comments by email to: stats-consultation@dwp.gov.uk.

Users can also join the ‘Welfare and Benefit Statistics’ community at StatsUserNet. DWP announces items of interest to users via this forum, as well as replying to users’ questions.

ISBN: 978-1-78659-694-9