Greens Get more Social Support into City Plans

12th March 2008

A Green Party amendment to the Local Area Agreement was passed on Friday 7th March as part of the budget meeting. The Agreement sets targets for Sheffield City Council and its "partners" for 2008-11. Performance Indicators are agreed between central and local government to judge whether Councils are doing their job. The Green amendment requires the Council to put more emphasis on tenancy support and exploring how to help people on incapacity benefit find suitable work.

Cllr Jillian Creasy said, "One of the indicators we have got into the Agreement is the 'number of vulnerable people achieving independent living'. Supported housing schemes that act as a stepping stone to independent living help vulnerable tenants to cope with renting a home and so they are less likely to become homeless or slip into antisocial behaviour. Research shows that schemes like this help these tenants to rely less on other support services, including social services, health, and policing, later on.

She continued, "Sheffield Council is supposed to be taking the lead in reducing the number of people out of work, but progress is slow. We know that it takes longer for some people, such as those on incapacity benefits and lone parents, to get back into long-term jobs. Imposing sanctions on people who do not go back to work, as in the Pathways to Work scheme, can be counter-productive, and can actually make mental health problems worse, according to research by the Department of Work and Pensions. These people need support and targets that are tailored to their needs".

The amendment also calls for the Work and Skills Board to co-operate with the DWP to look at the employment experiences of people coming off Incapacity Benefit

ENDS