This week I had the pleasure of participating in the launch of the final report of the Pathways to Work Commission – a year-long programme of work I have been engaged in as a Commissioner, chaired by Rt Hon Alan Milburn, which has focussed on how to support those who are economically inactive in Barnsley back into work, while also stemming the flow of individuals leaving the labour market too.

The Commission’s report provides a substantial deep dive into the factors driving people out of the labour market and provides the blueprint for a new approach to addressing the issue, which local and regional partners intend to turn into a pilot in early 2025.

A ‘place based’ approach to tackling economic inactivity

The Barnsley economy, like that of much of the North of England, has undergone a significant and often painful period of deindustrialisation over the last forty years. Unlike in the 1980s, today unemployment in Barnsley is significantly below regional and national averages at 2.9%. But this headline figure risks hiding the reality – economic inactivity is significantly higher, leaving residents in Barnsley twenty percent more likely to be out of work than residents elsewhere in the country.

By taking a ‘place based’ approach to understanding and addressing this issue of economic inactivity, the Pathways to Commission has attempted to break what can often seem an intractable challenge down – understanding more about the specific reasons why people leave the labour market, and the practical barriers that are too often preventing them from re-engaging in the world of work.

To aid this, alongside evidence from national experts, we heard from 750 South Yorkshire economically inactive residents via telephone surveys, 47 one-to-one, in-depth interviews with Barnsley residents, 4 focus groups with Barnsley residents to discuss possible solutions and 146 partners and experts that deliver services in Barnsley.

The research gathered reveals the complexity of the challenge – most economically inactive people face multiple, overlapping barriers to engaging in work. Three quarters of telephone interviewees had a health condition, with half of that number citing it was the primary reason their last job came to an end. But we also found that a need to balance caring responsibilities alongside work, the poor quality and insecure nature of jobs on offer locally, inadequate skills and learning infrastructure and poor transport connectivity were also significant barriers.

More encouragingly, interviews with residents across South Yorkshire suggest that 7 in 10 economically inactive people would take a job that aligned with their skills, interests and circumstances. 40% said that they would do so 'now' or 'in the near future'. It seems with the right support, it could be possible to see far more of these individuals supported back into an appropriate form of employment in the future.

Establishing tackling economic inactivity as a shared national and regional imperative

Ultimately however, the Commission’s conclusions are clear that doing so will require major reform across the areas of employment support, welfare, health and education – underpinned by a national strategy to raise labour market participation.

Perhaps most importantly, we need to see significantly more targeted support for people that have been out of work and would like to re-enter the jobs market in places like Barnsley. This recommendation was strongly endorsed by new Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, Liz Kendall, who joined the Commission for the launch of its final report.

She used her first major policy announcement of the new Parliament to set out how she intends to move the DWP from being a department focussed on administering the welfare system, to one that is focussed on supporting people to enter and progress in work. This, she argued, requires a radically different approach based less on punitive sanctions driven by central Government, and more on tailored, locally led employment, skills and health support to enable those who want to work access a job that works for them.

To be effective, the Commission’s work suggests the devolution of elements of employment support will be critical, as will the streamlining of local service provision and an approach that prioritises one-to-one professional support for people who need help to find and access job opportunities that are right for them.

There will also be a significant role for employers to play too, both in providing the right kinds of opportunities and support for those looking to return to work, but also in supporting those at risk of falling out of the labour market to remain in work. That will require collaboration between employers and service providers, increasing investment in things like occupational health, and ensuring job roles are provided that offer secure and flexible employment wherever possible.

Moving from analysis to action

The full report of the Commission contains a substantial number of additional recommendations to address the findings of our research – far too many to list here. But perhaps most encouragingly there is already a clear commitment from stakeholders in South Yorkshire to move from analysis to action.

A local pilot of a new approach to providing employment support services to those economically inactive is proposed and is likely to be launched in 2025, and a number of employers in the area have already committed to proactive recruitment of those currently outside of the labour market. And national Government has signalled its intention to move at pace too, with a White Paper for reform of DWP services expected soon.

The scale of the challenge that rising economic inactivity (particularly related to health) presents cannot be underestimated. But the Pathways to Work Commission, aligned with a renewed commitment from Government for national reform, does provide a blueprint for how we can begin to tackle it. You can access the full report here.

Related Blogs

• 

  Frosty Days, Festive Ways!

• 

  Taking student issues to Parliament

• 

  The financial career landscape

Disclaimer

The opinions expressed by our bloggers and those providing comments are personal, and may not necessarily reflect the opinions of Lancaster University. Responsibility for the accuracy of any of the information contained within blog posts belongs to the blogger.