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Benefits Agency

Volume 300: debated on Friday 14 November 1997

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To ask the Secretary of State for Social Security (1) which five areas were used for the pilot schemes in which lone mothers claiming income support were visited by Benefits Agency staff at home, when each scheme commenced; how many claimants have been visited in each of the five areas; what assessment she has made of the success of the pilot schemes; and what proposals she has for further schemes; [13975](2) if she will publish the interview questions asked by Benefits Agency staff when interviewing claimants at home; [13974](3) what training has been given to Benefits Agency staff to carry out tasks previously carried out by Child Support Agency staff. [13973]

The operation of the Benefits Agency is a matter for its Chief Executive, Mr. Peter Mathison. He will write to my hon. Friends.

Letter from Peter Mathison to Mrs. Maria Fyfe, dated 13 November 1997:

The Secretary of State for Social Security has asked me to reply to your recent Parliamentary Questions concerning the pilot schemes in which lone mothers claiming Income Support were visited by Benefits Agency (BA) staff at home.
The five sites used for the pilot schemes were Bristol, West Bromwich, Pontefract, Kirkcaldy and Norwich. As a control, and for comparison purposes, the sites were paired with offices of similar size and caseload which were following normal procedures.
Initially two pilot schemes were undertaken; phase I from 1 April 1997 to 30 April 1997 and phase 2 from I May 1997 and 30 May 1997. Phase 1 involved issuing a Maintenance Application Form (MAF) at the new claims visit and phase 2, issuing and completing the MAF.
250 visits were undertaken for each phase, and the numbers for each site are as follows:

Site

Phase 1

Phase 2

Bristol6049
West Bromwich4959
Pontefract4251
Kirkcaldy4028
Norwich5963
Total250250
The evaluation has shown an improved customer service by the Agencies as all issues are raised at the start of the claim. They have also shown a significant increase in the number of customers co-operating with the Child Support Agency (CSA) at the start of the claim, which will expedite the maintenance process.
The Department's programme for modernising service delivery aims to identify the scope for reducing overlaps and repetition of work between Agencies where they have clients in common. These pilots have demonstrated that lone parents are better served by the Department conducting business in this way.
A third pilot scheme was undertaken form 1 July 1997 to 26 September 1997, involving trained BA visiting staff also questioning customers about their reasons for claiming "Good Cause" where appropriate. Good cause is where the customer seeks to avoid being required to apply for child support maintenance on the grounds that there is a risk of harm or undue distress if the CSA should pursue the absent parent. The same areas were involved in this pilot with the addition of Chilterns, the results of which are currently being evaluated.
Following the successful results of the initial pilot schemes, it has been agreed that MAF issue and completion work should be transferred to the BA from April 1998. To fully consider the impact of this transfer of responsibility to BA, two sites are continuing with phase 2 of the pilot.
A specific list of the questions which the customers are asked when interviewed at home is not available. BA visiting officers are trained to ask the appropriate questions depending on the customers particular circumstances.
The BA staff who have been involved in these pilots have been fully trained in Child Support applications and in interviewing lone parents.
I hope you find this reply helpful.