Responding to the Government's Pathways to Work Green Paper, 18 March 2025

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18 03 2025

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Responding to the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions' Pathways to Work Green Paper announcement on 18 March 2025, Stephen Evans, Chief Executive of Learning and Work Institute, said:
Only one in ten out-of-work disabled people get help to find work, despite two in ten wanting to work. The Green Paper contains welcome steps to change that, including regular support conversations and a £1 billion expansion of voluntary employment support. But the devil is in the detail and it will take broad-based change to deliver lasting improvements to people’s lives and sustainable savings to the taxpayer. That includes joining up work, health and skills services, and working with employers to promote healthy workplaces and new ways of designing jobs. Short-term cuts often don’t deliver the hoped-for savings and do increase poverty. A more inclusive and supportive system can be a win-win-win for people, employers and taxpayers.
These numbers also mask substantial inequalities within construction. Women account for only 10 per cent of starts in construction apprenticeships so far this year, compared to 51 per cent of apprenticeships overall. In addition, this year only 9 per cent of construction starts are by individuals from minority ethnic backgrounds, with particularly big disparities for apprentices from black or Asian backgrounds. The following years therefore present a unique opportunity to not only further boost apprenticeship numbers in the construction sector, but to expand their reach to wider groups. The new Government should work with employers and providers to seize this.

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