Scotland's Devolved Employment Services: statistical summary May 2019

Background Information

1. Experimental Statistics 

Experimental statistics are a type of official statistics that are undergoing development. They are defined in the Code of Practice for Official Statistics as: 'new official statistics undergoing evaluation that are published in order to involve users and stakeholders in their development as a means to build in quality at an early stage'.

2a. Reporting periods

Fair Start Scotland. The service was launched on 3 April 2018 (Q1). We report referrals and starts for Q1 2018 to Q4 (29 March 2019). There was an opportunity for referrals to be made for a short period prior to launch, commencing 13 March 2018.

Work First Scotland and Work Able Scotland. These services were launched on 3 April 2017 (Q1).  Referrals to both services stopped in Q1 2018 (9 March 2018). We report all referrals between 3 April 2017 and 9 March 2018. We also report all starts for each service – all starts were recorded by 30 March 2018 (Q4), aside from 4 starts in April for WFS. We started reporting job outcomes for participants in Q1 2018 and the latest data included Q4 (29 March 2019).

Health & Work Support Pilot. The pilot was launched on 26 June 2018 and is scheduled to run for 2 years. We have previously reported referrals and enrolments for the first quarter of the pilot (26 June to 30 September 2018) and the second quarter (01 October to 31 December 2018); with the most recent now including the third quarter (01 January to 29 March 2019). The numbers of participants for light touch support is low, so this is instead reported every six months in order to reduce disclosure risk - 26 June to 31 December 2018 in this publication.

2b. Reporting differences

The age groupings used in this publication for the Health & Work Support pilot differ slightly from those used for Work First Scotland, Work Able Scotland and Fair Start Scotland. The classifications used for reporting health conditions in Work Able Scotland and the Health & Work Support pilot are both also slightly different than those used for Work First Scotland and Fair Start Scotland. This is because different organisations deliver and manage the services. 

3. Fair Start Scotland (FSS) background information

Data sources

The Scottish Employability Tracking System (SETS) 

SETS is the Scottish Government referrals tracking system for Fair Start Scotland. Information on those referred (‘referrals’) and outcomes relating to those individuals, including those who join FSS (‘starts’), enter employment (‘job starts’), and subsequently achieve employment outcomes (‘job outcomes’), is recorded on SETS. It tracks the progress of referrals made to the service and provides management information in relation to performance.

The statistics in this release are based on figures extracted from SETS on 30 April 2019. 

Information provided by service providers

The statistics on age, gender, long-term health conditions, disability and ethnic group are derived from information collected by service providers when an individual joins FSS. Information is collected via a combination of face-to-face interviews and SG equalities monitoring forms, using SG recommended questions and published using related output classifications.The statistics in this release are based on returns for the period 13 March 2018 to 29 March 2019.   

Local Authority areas map to FSS delivery areas as follows:

FSS Delivery Area	Local Authority Area
Glasgow	Glasgow City Council
Lanarkshire	North Lanarkshire Council South Lanarkshire Council
Tayside	Angus Council Dundee City Council Perth and Kinross Council
Forth Valley	Clackmannanshire Council Falkirk Council Stirling Council
East	Edinburgh City Council  East Lothian Council Fife Council Midlothian Council Scottish Borders Council West Lothian Council
Southwest	East Ayrshire Council Dumfries and Galloway Council North Ayrshire Council South Ayrshire Council
North East	Aberdeen City Council Aberdeenshire Council
Highlands and Islands	Argyll and Bute Council Na h-Eilean Siar (Western Isles Council) Highlands Council Moray Council  Orkney Islands Council Shetland Islands Council
West	East Renfrewshire Council Inverclyde Council Renfrewshire Council East Dunbartonshire Council West Dunbartonshire Council

Methodology

Referrals 

The referral numbers published in this release are net figures, which excludes 334 rejected referrals. The vast majority of these were duplicates.

Starts 

The total number of FSS starts used to calculate the percentage of people who joined the service reflects the outcomes of referrals made during the period 13 March 2018 to 29 March 2019, which includes 204 people who had a recorded start date after that, as recorded by SETS.  

Early leavers

An early leaver is someone who exits the service before the end of the pre-employment support period without achieving an outcome.

Job starts

When an individual progresses into work, service providers record a ‘job start’ for the individual on SETS. An individual can enter employment more than once; however the figures in this publication are for the individual’s first recorded job only. The number of job starts is therefore equal to the number of people who had entered employment. All figures are up to 29 March 2019.

Employment outcomes

A ’13 week’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in work, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 13 consecutive weeks; that is, a job which lasts at least 13 weeks. 

A ’26 week’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in a job, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 26 weeks out of 30; that is, continuous employment, but not necessarily in the same job, lasting 26 out of 30 weeks (breaks in employment must total no more than 4 weeks).

Data amendments 

Some inconsistencies in responses to the questions on disability, as reported by service providers, were identified, as follows:

• Of those participants who responded ‘No’ to the question asking whether respondents had a physical or mental health condition lasting, or expected to last 12 months or more:
  • 447 participants answered the second question on extent of limitation (55 yes, a lot; 161 yes, a little; 231 not at all). These responses were excluded from the totals. 
  • 378 participants reported one or more long-term health condition (644 conditions in total were recorded). These conditions have been excluded from the count of long-term health conditions. 
  • In 71 cases, more than one response for extent of limitation was recorded, in which case only the highest level has been included.

4. Work First Scotland (WFS) background information

Data sources

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) Provider Referrals and Payments (PRaP) system

Information on those referred (‘referrals’) and outcomes relating to those referrals, including those who join WFS (‘starts’) and subsequently achieve employment outcomes (‘job outcomes’), is recorded by the DWP PRaP system. Service providers send monthly returns to DWP, containing information on outcomes for participants, including starts, as well as information relating to employment outcomes. 

The Scottish Government receive monthly reports from PRaP, via DWP. The statistics in this release are based on the report generated on 29 March 2019. For additional quality assurance purposes, equivalent data as recorded by service providers on their caseload management systems is also reported to SG at regular intervals. 

Information collected by service providers

The statistics on long-term health conditions, age, gender and ethnic group are derived from information collected by service providers when an individual joins WFS. This information is required for service delivery and equalities monitoring purposes. Information is collected via a combination of face-to-face interviews and SG equalities monitoring forms. The statistics in this release are based on returns for the period 13 March 2018 to 29 March 2019.   

Methodology

Referrals 

The referral numbers published in this release are net figures, which exclude a small number of inappropriate referrals. Inappropriate referrals are those made for people who do not meet eligibility criteria or are not suitable for the service.

Starts 

The total number of WFS starts used in the calculation of the percentage of people who joined the service reflects the outcomes of referrals during the period 3 April 2017 to 9 March 2018, which includes 4 people who had a recorded start date after 30 March 2018, as recorded by the DWP PRaP system. 

The percentage of people who joined WFS is calculated by dividing the total number of starts which have resulted from the total number of referrals made during the period 3 April 2017 to 9 March 2018, as recorded by the DWP PRaP system. Referrals which are recorded as being inappropriate are excluded from the calculation. 

Early leavers

An early leaver is someone who exits the service before the end of the pre-employment support period without achieving an outcome.

Job starts

When an individual progresses into work, service providers record a ‘job start’ for the individual on their management information (MI) systems. An individual can enter employment more than once; however the figures in this publication are for the individual’s first recorded job only. The number of job starts is therefore equal to the number of people who had entered employment. All figures are up to 29 March 2019.

Employment outcomes 

A ‘short’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in work, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 13 consecutive weeks; that is, a job which lasts at least 13 weeks. 

A ‘sustained’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in a job, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 26 weeks out of 30; that is, continuous employment, but not necessarily in the same job, lasting 26 out of 30 weeks (breaks in employment must total no more than 4 weeks).

The start to short, and start to sustained, job outcome rates at 29 March 2019 are calculated by dividing the total number of short and sustained job outcomes achieved, respectively, by everyone who started on the service. These rates are therefore near final, but may change marginally in future publications, as figures will not be final until the services close.  

The short to sustained job outcome rate at 29 March 2019 is calculated by dividing the total number of sustained job outcomes achieved by the total number of short job outcomes achieved. This rate is also therefore near final, but  as above, may change marginally in future publications, as figures will not be final until the services close. 

The number of job outcomes recorded by service providers on their caseload management systems differs slightly from the number of job outcomes recorded by the DWP PRaP system. There are minor differences in these totals because they are derived from separate administrative systems. 

5. Work Able Scotland (WAS) background information

Data sources 

Skills Development Scotland (SDS) Corporate Training System (CTS) 

The figures on those who join WAS (‘starts’) and achieve employment outcomes (‘job outcomes’) are derived from information recorded and maintained on CTS by service providers. CTS is an IT system which supports the administration of programmes such as WAS. The system facilitates the processing of payments to training providers and the effective recording and monitoring of individuals’ information. Data from CTS up to 29 March 2019 was used to provide the numbers for this report.

Information collected by service providers

Referrals are reported to SDS directly by service providers. The agreed referral arrangements for WAS between DWP and SDS are based on a clerical process put in place between DWP and service providers. DWP makes referrals directly to service providers by post, using the WAS Referral form. Providers maintain records of referrals received and the outcome of those. Data integrity checks are carried out by SDS as part of monitoring activities on an on-going basis. This includes liaison with service providers in relation to any discrepancies. Final checks of totals were made prior to production of the figures used in this release.

Equalities monitoring information for WAS participants is collected using SDS’ equalities monitoring form, which is consistent with the form used for capturing data for the published statistics on National Training Programmes (Modern Apprenticeships and Employability Fund). 

Methodology

Referrals 

The referral numbers published in this release are net figures, which exclude a small number of inappropriate referrals. Inappropriate referrals are those made for people who do not meet the eligibility criteria or are not suitable for the service.

Starts 

The total number of WAS starts used in the calculation of the percentage of people who joined the service reflects the outcomes of referrals made between 3 April 2017 and 9 March 2018. 

WAS participant information is based on the total number of people who had a recorded start date on CTS which fell within the period 3 April 2017 to 30 March 2018.

The percentage of people who join WAS is calculated by dividing the total number of starts which have resulted from the total number of referrals made during the period 3 April 2017 to 9 March 2018. This calculation uses number of referrals submitted by service providers, and number of starts recorded on CTS. Referrals which are recorded as being inappropriate are excluded from the calculation.

Early leavers

An early leaver is someone who exits the service before the end of the pre-employment support period without achieving an outcome.

Job starts

When an individual progresses into work, WAS service providers record a ‘job start’ for the individual. The number of job starts is recorded on provider caseload management systems. An individual can enter employment more than once; however the figures in this publication are for an individual’s first recorded job only. Therefore the number of job starts is equal to the number of individuals who had entered employment.

Employment outcomes

A ‘short’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in a job, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 6 consecutive weeks; that is, a job which lasts at least 6 weeks. 

A ‘sustained’ job outcome is achieved when a participant stays in work, or is self-employed, working 16 hours per week or more, for at least 26 weeks out of 30; that is, the same job with continuous employment lasting 26 out of 30 weeks (breaks in employment should last no longer than 4 weeks). 

The commencement date for a job outcome must occur either (i) during the period the participant is engaged in the service, or (ii) no later than the date occurring 13 weeks after the date the customer leaves the service.

The start to short job outcome rate at 29 March 2019 is calculated by dividing the total number of short job outcomes achieved by the total number of starts recorded during the first 9 months of WAS (3 April to 29 December 2017). This is because participants are entitled to up to 12 months of support plus a maximum of 19 weeks to achieve a short job outcome (6 weeks, plus 13 weeks to claim).

The start to sustained job outcome rate at 29 March 2019 is calculated by dividing the total number of short job outcomes achieved by the total number of starts recorded during the first 3 months of WAS (3 April to 29 June 2017). This is because participants are entitled to up to 12 months of support plus a maximum of 56 weeks to achieve a sustained job outcome (26 weeks, plus 30 weeks to claim). This rate will be updated in future publications as more people reach the maximum amount of time allowed for sustained job outcomes to be claimed.

6. Health & Work Support Pilot background information

Data souces

Data for the case-management service is recorded on Syntax, a system run by Salus (NHS Lanarkshire). Referrals and enrolment information is collected via a web-based referral form or by a call handler provided by Salus. All information is self-reported by the client. 

Methodology

Referrals

Referrals are made either by participants themselves or an external organisation (e.g. GPs, Jobcentre Plus or employers). This is completed before employment status, health condition or eligibility has been determined. All referrals are counted, even if they are not eligible or the user does not wish to continue. The pilot accepts referrals as eligible if they come from anyone with ill-health and/or a disability living or working in Dundee City or Fife who are either:

Recently unemployed (up to 6 months)

Working but at risk of unemployment (so for example, the participant could be off-sick from work (absent from work)). 

Enrolments

An enrolment (where the participant joins the service) is recorded when a participant has spoken to a call handler to determine their eligibility and collect basic information about their situation, including equalities information. The client is enrolled into the case management services provided by NHS staff in either Dundee City or Fife. 

Health conditions

The health status of a client is recorded by the case manager during the clinical assessment performed by NHS staff in the local teams. All health conditions for those enrolled into the case-management service and who have had an assessment should be recorded, but sometimes they may not be. Health conditions are self-reported by the client to the case-manager, who then records it using pre-decided commonly occuring categories (e.g. Mental health – depression). It’s important to note that the health conditions reported for the pilot are collected in a different way to the health conditions reported in FSS, WFS & WAS.