Recommendation 64

As discussed in detail in Chapter five, most people applying to the DWP for Universal Credit in Scotland will initially apply through an online digital process. Once a claim is processed, they will meet with an assigned Jobcentre Plus work coach as part of their Claimant Commitment contract. The evidence we were presented with on this issue drew attention to some difficulties with how Jobcentre Plus operates in Scotland. We heard concerns from Chris Birt at the Joseph Rowntree Foundation about whether front-line Jobcentre Plus staff in Scotland had the knowledge and time to sign-post claimants to application processes for devolved benefits and support provided by other agencies such as local authorities.152 Kirsty McKechnie at the Child Poverty Action Group highlighted their concerns over the caseloads of work coaches which may affect their time and ability to provide a wide range of relevant advice and sign-posting to people experiencing poverty. They told us that there was ‘concern raised about how many people work coaches have to look after at the moment’.153 Professor McKeever, Ulster University, raised a similar point saying that because of the high workload of work coaches ‘appointments have been reduced from 50 minutes to 30 minutes. That is giving less time to give individualised support’.154 This was also the Scottish Government’s view as the Cabinet Secretary told us that the ‘level of work that job coaches have is still high.’155 Meanwhile, Neil Cowan of The Poverty Alliance pointed to another issue of interaction with work coaches causing difficulty for claimants in Scotland because the ‘support and information from their work coach, which can be sometimes quite inconsistent.’156 This view was supported by the Chris Birt from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation who stated that, ‘people’s experiences are varied wildly by the amount of time that a work coach is able to put into helping them get back into work. Work coaches can really change people’s lives posit