PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Employment Schemes (7 November 2014)

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how many people engaged in the work experience scheme have had their benefit stopped as a result of not participating in each month since January 2011.

Asked by:
Sir Stephen Timms (Labour)

The available information as requested is shown in the table below.

Number of individuals with a Jobseeker's Allowance sanction applied for failing to participate in Work Experience, in each month: Great Britain, January 2011 to March 2012

Month	Number of individuals
Jan-11	0
Feb-11	0
Mar-11	0
Apr-11	0
May-11	5
Jun-11	21
Jul-11	30
Aug-11	60
Sep-11	64
Oct-11	39
Nov-11	58
Dec-11	77
Jan-12	46
Feb-12	37
Mar-12	6

Source: DWP Sanctions and Disallowance Decisions Statistics Database.

Notes:

1. Statistical disclosure control has been applied to this table to avoid the release of confidential data.

2. The table above shows the number of adverse sanction decisions made for the referral reason: Failure to participate in a scheme for assisting person to obtain employment without good reason - Work Experience.

3. An adverse decision is a decision to apply a sanction i.e. a decision found against the claimant so a sanction is applied.

4. In February 2012 the DWP announced that sanctions will no longer be applied to the benefits of those who do not start, or who leave, Work Experience.

5. This information is published at: https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/

Answered by:
Esther McVey (Conservative)
17 November 2014