[holding answer 10 September 2008]: The Department for Work and Pensions conducts a wide range of research to inform the strategic development and operational delivery of its policies. This includes formal evaluations of employment programmes and pilots, as well as more strategic research on work-related and service delivery issues. Other research considers, more broadly, customer satisfaction with various aspects of Jobcentre Plus provision.
Work-focused Interviews are one of the main ways through which Jobcentre Plus services are made available to its customers. Large bodies of evaluation evidence exist on work-focused Interviews, including qualitative studies of customers’ experiences, large scale quantitative surveys of clients’ journeys through Jobcentre Plus services and case studies of the delivery of client based services.
Comprehensive programmes of evaluation have taken place. All research reports are available in the House of Commons Library and are also available on the DWP website.
A list of relevant recently published research has been placed in the Library.