Sanctions, Support and Service Leavers: 22/03/2016 Sanctions, Support and Service Leavers: Welfare conditionality and transitions from military to civilian life Presentation for the Military Veterans Conference University of Salford, 22nd June 2017 Dr Lisa Scullion Reader in Social Policy and Associate Director Sustainable Housing & Urban Studies Unit (SHUSU) University of Salford

Part 1: What do we mean by welfare conditionality? 22/03/2016 Overview Part 1: What do we mean by welfare conditionality? Part 2: Does welfare conditionality impact on Service leavers and their families?: Introducing the Sanctions, Support and Service Leavers project

What is welfare conditionality? 22/03/2016 What is welfare conditionality? Welfare recipients subject to various forms of ‘conditions’ (Clasen and Clegg, 2007): Conditions of category: membership of defined category (e.g. disabled, unemployed, etc.) Conditions of circumstance: includes/excludes people depending on circumstances (e.g. passing means test) Conditions of conduct: demanding particular patterns of behaviour (behavioural conditions). Access to welfare should “be subject to the condition that those who receive them behave in particular ways, or participate in specified activities” (Deacon, 1994: 53) Successive Governments have increased and intensified the focus on conduct conditionality – it now cuts across a range of policy areas/groups (e.g. unemployment, disability, homelessness, social housing, etc.) Growing evidence on the impact of welfare conditionality …

What are people telling us? 22/03/2016 What are people telling us? The one thing they asked me was how I got to the medical. I said, 'Well I got the bus down to here and walked from the bus stop.’ Next thing I know I get a letter through saying that I'm on suspension because I do meet the criteria of work. The argument that they had was because I'd walked from the bus stop I was able to work. I need work that will fit around me, rather than me fit round it… I need rest periods… [not] standard business hours and like it or lump it… [A] company wanted an HGV driver right I had to apply for that but I don't drive. Now where's the logic there do you know what I mean?...I applied for everything that was there just to prove to them that I'm applying for it. You're never going to get the job So, I can't afford to eat at the moment… So, he [my son], he'll eat my food...He even says, 'Why aren't you eating?‘, 'I ate earlier.' A missed appointment, they said. They put me under the sanction…I had nil income for four and a half months…I turned to prostitution. It was the most horrific time of my life…I got raped. I got beaten up.

What are people telling us? 22/03/2016 What are people telling us? Broad support for the principle of welfare conditionality (i.e. ‘rights’ being linked to ‘responsibilities’) … But … Concerns around the extension of conditionality to previously exempt ‘groups’ (e.g. disabled people, people in work) The support provided was often seen as poor quality Conditionality sometimes counter productive to finding a job One size fits all approach seen as flawed and unfair – need a more personalised approach reflecting people’s needs, capabilities and responsibilities outside the paid labour market

22/03/2016 Does welfare conditionality impact on Service leavers and their families?

22/03/2016 A gap in the knowledge? Growing body of research recognising the issues that can occur in the transition from military life Specific exemptions and easements are made – as part of DWP commitment to the Armed Forces Covenant: Early access to the Work Programme, Armed Forces Champions, use of Service Medical Board evidence rather than mainstream medical assessments in claims for ESA, exemption from three month residence requirement, easing voluntary unemployment conditionality for spouses. Existing specialist employment support enabling positive outcomes for many Service leavers but very little known of people’s experiences of mainstream unemployment support Review of literature suggests no research to date has explored the experiences of Service leavers within our mainstream conditional benefits system

22/03/2016 Sanctions, Support and Service Leavers: Welfare conditionality and transitions from military to civilian life Aim To provide a new qualitative evidence base on the impacts of welfare conditionality on Service leavers and their families Objectives To map Service leavers’ diverse pathways into, and out of, the mainstream social security benefits system; To assess the extent to which welfare conditionality within the benefit system may enhance or inhibit successful transitions to civilian life; To consider the effectiveness of the exemptions/easements made through the Armed Forces Covenant in relation to social security benefits in meeting the needs of Service leavers and their families; and To explore wider debates about the appropriateness (ethicality) of the application of a principle of welfare conditionality for Services leavers and their families, in light of the Armed Forces Covenant, and their previous service to the nation.

22/03/2016 The team Dr Lisa Scullion, Reader in Social Policy, University of Salford (Project Director) Professor Peter Dwyer, Professor of Social Policy, University of York Dr Celia Hynes, Senior Lecturer, University of Salford Katy Jones, Research Fellow, University of Salford Philip Martin, Research Assistant, University of Salford

What are we doing? Two year project 22/03/2016 What are we doing? Two year project Fieldwork with three sets of respondents Semi-structured interviews with 10 policy stakeholders/national organisations Semi-structured interviews with 20 frontline practitioners Two waves of interviews with a sample of 60 Service leavers who are subject to conditionality (120 household interviews in total) – including consultation with individuals but also some family consultation Fieldwork locations across England (Cumbria, Greater Manchester, Merseyside and London) Outputs/dissemination Two feedback events specifically for Service leavers Two conferences for Service leavers, policy makers and practitioners Interim and final report Graphic novel

What are people telling us? Emerging issues … 22/03/2016 What are people telling us? Emerging issues … Difficulties navigating this complex system, particularly when they have never experienced such systems before The Work Programme perceived as a form of ‘punishment’ rather than a form of employment support Lack of awareness of Job Centre/DWP staff to understand the specific needs and circumstances of Service leavers Concerns around safety of DWP staff and other work related activity participants in cases of severe mental health issues Lack of awareness of type of employment Service leavers skills and qualifications would be suited to Variation in the quality of service in relation to Armed Forces Champions and front line staff not always aware of the Armed Forces Covenant – however, non-disclosure of Service leaver status can be an issue Service leavers who face difficulties with benefit claim often don’t seek support until ‘crisis point’ (e.g. sanction has been applied, wrongly classified)

22/03/2016 Thank you If you have any questions about the project, or would like to get involved, please contact: Dr Lisa Scullion Reader in Social Policy and Associate Director Sustainable Housing & Urban Studies Unit (SHUSU) University of Salford Email: l.scullion@salford.ac.uk Telephone: 0161 295 5078