This document summarizes findings from a study on the impacts of welfare conditionality and sanctions in Salford, England. Key findings include: 1) Sanctions are having significant negative social and economic impacts on individuals and households in Salford, including debt, food insecurity, health issues, homelessness, and crime. 2) Younger people aged 18-25 are most impacted by sanctions. 3) Local agencies and services are facing increased demand and costs due to dealing with the consequences of sanctions, such as rising mental health issues and need for discretionary financial support. 4) There is little evidence that sanctions are improving employment outcomes in Salford, and some data suggests the conditional

1. Voices from Greater
Manchester
Friday 17th June 2016
University of Salford

2. Professor Philip Brown
Making Research Count
at The University of Salford
#GMWelCond

3. • National initiative across ten universities in England
• A knowledge broker
• Bringing together academics, practitioners, carers and users to
facilitate the dissemination of social care research and theory
• The University of Salford is the regional hub for MRC in Greater
Manchester
• Support the learning needs of a range of organisations in the sub-
region
Making Research Count (MRC)
#GMWelCond

4. Overview of First Wave Findings
Voices from Greater Manchester
Professor Peter Dwyer, University of York, UK
Katy Jones, University of Salford, UK
Dr Lisa Scullion, University of Salford, UK
Friday 17th June 2016
University of Salford, MediaCityUK @WelCond #GMWelCond

5.  Part 1: Introduction to Welfare Conditionality: Sanctions, Support and
Behaviour Change
 Part 2: First wave findings: sanctions and support
 Part 3: First wave findings: behaviour change and ethics
Overview of presentation 5

6. Part 1: Introduction to Welfare Conditionality:
Sanctions, Support and Behaviour Change
Professor Peter Dwyer
University of York, UK
6

7. Twin aims:
 To consider the ethics and efficacy of welfare conditionality
Fieldwork with three sets of respondents:
1. Semi-structured interviews with 52 Policy Stakeholders
2. 27 focus groups with frontline welfare practitioners who implement policy
3. Three rounds of repeat qualitative longitudinal interviews with a diverse
sample of 480 welfare recipients who are subject to conditionality i.e.
1440 interviews in total.
Funded by ESRC grant ES/K002163​/2
Welfare conditionality: sanctions, support
and behaviour change (2013-2018)
7

8.  Exploring welfare conditionality across a range of policy domains
and groups
Recipients of social security benefits (unemployed people, lone parents,
disabled people, Universal Credit ), homeless people, social tenants,
individuals/families subject to anti-social behaviour orders/family intervention
projects, offenders and migrants
 Locations in England and Scotland
Bath, Bristol, Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, London, Manchester,
Peterborough, Salford, Sheffield, Warrington
Welfare conditionality: sanctions, support
and behaviour change (2013-2018)
8

9.  A principle of conditionality
Access to certain basic publicly provided welfare entitlements should “be
subject to the condition that those who receive them behave in particular
ways, or participate in specified activities” (Deacon, 1994: 53)
 So what - conditionality is nothing new!
The link between social rights and contractual obligations of citizens has long
been explicit (e.g. Beveridge Report, 1942; Freud, 2007; DWP, 2008).
 Social citizenship reconfigured: emergence of the conditional
welfare state (Dwyer, 1998-2016)
Entered an era of ‘ubiquitous conditionality’ (Dwyer and Wright, 2014)
Focus on ‘conduct conditionality’ (Clasen and Clegg, 2007)
Welfare conditionality?
9

10. Part 2: Sanctions and support
Katy Jones
University of Salford, UK
10

11.  Negative impacts universally reported by welfare service users
I've gone a lot more into myself.… To be honest, it's stressed me out that
much…I'm just not how I was, where I was always full of life (Female Universal
Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
 Counter productive and negative consequences
They shouldn't just take money off people and leave them with nothing, do you
know what I mean? It shouldn't happen. See I had to go out robbing when they
done that, do you know what I mean? I didn't do the food banks then. I had to
go out robbing (Male subject to ASB measures, Greater Manchester)
Sanctions
11

12.  Disproportionate and inappropriate sanctions
It was a genuine mistake but I'd still gone in that day, it's not as though I
hadn't turned up or anything. So I rang up straightaway, I explained my
situation and like I say it was generally just daft, but it was a mistake, an
innocent but stupid mistake, we all make mistakes but I still did turn up and I
got a sanction for a week (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater
Manchester)
 Lack of communication and understanding
I had so many sanctions and I didn't know what they were for. I rang the lady,
it took about two weeks actually for this actual lady to actually ring me back
(Female Universal Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
Sanctions
12

13.  Negative experiences of support widespread
They should be focusing on getting you a job so you'd never have to worry
about sanctions. Because it's called the Jobcentre not the Sanctioncentre. You
know what I mean? (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
 Some good practice is evident – but variation across geographical
areas, providers, advisors, etc.
What it is, I think you've got one person thinks he's better than the rest, and
that's it, you're getting sanctioned. It's like sometimes when you go in there,
some of them will talk to you like a piece of rubbish... it just depends what side
of the bed they get out, if you ask me…The one I've got now, [name of advisor]
touch wood, he's been really nice with me (Male Universal Credit claimant,
Greater Manchester)
Support
13

14.  The significance of support
I've had a few food parcels from my housing [provider], or Citizens Advice, and my
nan will cook tea and things as I need (Female Universal Credit claimant, Greater
Manchester)
Great, absolutely great…it has helped me understand a lot more, be a better mum
than I was. It's helped him be a million times better dad than he was, because he's
had the same support (Female subject to family intervention, Greater Manchester)
 Flexibility required in responding to additional barriers and needs
I don't think I could do a heavy manual job for 40 hours a week. I could do one with
light duties…I’m finding my own way to be honest. No, they don't give or offer you
much real support (Male ex-offender on ESA, Greater Manchester)
Support
14

15. Part 3: Behaviour change and ethics
Dr Lisa Scullion
University of Salford, UK
15

16.  A stated aim of conditionality is positive behaviour change to:
– prepare for or find paid work
– maintain and advance in paid work
– encourage responsible behaviour
 Assumption that positive behaviour amongst target groups is not
possible without coercion …
Behaviour change
16

17.  Virtually all welfare service user interviewees expressed the desire for
the types of positive behaviour intended
You want to find work. You want to save up for things…you want a better standard of
living. Working is the only way you can do it (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater
Manchester)
 Limited evidence of welfare conditionality bringing about behaviour
change
They think, because they've slapped me with an ASBO, they think that I'm going to
behave. But I'm not…Because they're doing it wrong. The conditions that I've got on
that ASBO, it's unbelievable (Male subject to ASB measures, Greater Manchester)
Behaviour change
17

18.  Rare that conditionality worked to move people closer to the labour
market
Well, I want a job so I'd carry on doing what I'm doing anyway…It's not as if, if you
don't get a sanction you're not going to do anything about getting a job…I want a
job, so give me a job, I will go on it, I will for my own sanity (Female Universal
Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
 Behaviour change to comply with process at the expense of outcome
[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 (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
Behaviour change
18

19.  Broad support for the principle of welfare conditionality (i.e.
‘rights’ being linked to ‘responsibilities’)
You can't just take out of the system and expect not to put nothing back in
ourselves, do you know what I mean? (Male subject to ASB measures, Greater
Manchester)
 But … this did not mean uncritical acceptance - widespread concern
around:
– Inappropriate application
– Proportionality
– Questions of deserving and undeserving
– Lack of personalisation
Ethics - Support for conditionality?
19

20.  Concerns around the extension of conditionality to previously
exempt ‘groups’ (e.g. disabled people)
They've just sent me a letter saying that basically they want me off ESA and
back on JSA...It's pretty worrying actually. I can't go on JSA when I'm on this
treatment. I can't get out of the house let alone go look for work (Male ESA
claimant subject to ASB measures, Greater Manchester)
 Concerns around ‘in-work’ (counter-productive) conditionality
I got this second sanction for like a week. Now I'm working
[temporarily]…What they do is they pigeonhole it and then when I actually do
start claiming Universal Credit again then suddenly they'll make this one week
sanction (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
Ethics - Inappropriate application
20

21.  What level of sanction is acceptable for non-compliance?
They shouldn't just take money off people and leave them with nothing, do you
know what I mean? It shouldn't happen (Male subject to ASB measures,
Greater Manchester)
 The need to retain a basic minimum even when sanctioned
Everyone should be entitled to a roof over their head whether you're earning or
not. People's circumstances are different. Some people can't help it, some can.
Something could happen to me and I could be out of work tomorrow (Female
social Housing respondent, Greater Manchester)
Ethics - Proportionality
21

22.  Many WSUs assert their entitlement by stating that welfare
conditionality is fair when applied to other ‘undeserving’ groups (e.g.
migrants, ‘druggies’, people ‘on the sick’)
They've let [in] all these foreign people…the Government should have helped us
English people first, who were here, then started letting people in. Not let people in
first and then think, 'Oh, my God, what are we going to do now?' (Male ESA claimant
subject to ASB measures, Greater Manchester)
It gets a bit ridiculous, especially when I can stand at my kitchen window and see all
the drug dealers walking past who never seem to get pulled up about why they've
never had a job in 35 years (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater Manchester)
 Everyone has their own legitimating position/frame contributing to
discourses around ‘deservedness’
Ethics - Questions of deserving and
undeserving
22

23.  A need to treat people as human beings
They don't really look at the person, they just think, oh, I'll mark him off. Do
you know what I mean? (Male JSA claimant, Greater Manchester)
 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
[You mention what you've done in the past and then you say what you've
actually done to look for work...There's no real, ‘well could you do this? Could
you do that?’. It's ‘you're doing this’ (Male Universal Credit claimant, Greater
Manchester,
Ethics - Personalised approach to welfare
conditionality
23

24. Thank you
Project website: www.welfareconditionality.ac.uk
Follow us on @WelCond
For more information contact:
Vici Armitage, Project Manager, vici.armitage@york.ac.uk

25. Peter Begg
Welfare: what’s all the fuss about?
#GMWelCond

26. Refreshments
and Networking Break
#GMWelCond

27. The impact of welfare
conditionality in Salford
#GMWelCond

28. DWP’s conditionality and sanctions
regime & the impacts in Salford.
One Year On report.
17th June 2016

29. What is DWP’s Conditionality & Sanctions regime?
• DWP conditionality forms part of wider Welfare Reform measures linking
benefit payments to ‘responsible behaviour’ and outlines what is expected of
claimants in order to receive benefit;
• The main benefits affected are JSA , ESA , IS and Universal Credit (UC);
• UC includes an extensive sanction regime including ‘in work’ conditionality
which is currently being piloted in Salford;
• Sanctions are applied to claimants who breach conditionality rules ; the main
reasons are failing to prove you have undertaken all required work search
and failing to attend a JCP or Work programme appointment;
• Hardship payments are available in certain circumstances must prove
destitution;
• Sanction decisions can be challenged but the process is complex and can be
protracted so claimants benefit from independent advice.

30. Background to Salford’s partnership work on benefit
conditionality and sanctions
Task force chaired by CEO of Salford CVS Alison Page includes representatives
from Salford Unemployed and Community Resource Centre, Salford Citizen’s Advice
Bureau, Salford City Council’s Welfare Rights and Debt Advice Service, Housing
Benefit and Skills and Work Commissioning Team.
Wide range of organisations in Salford contributed evidence including; The
Broughton Trust, National Probation Service, GP Lead for Mental Health on CCG,
Supported Tenancies, Salford City College, Work Clubs, Social housing providers,
Loaves and Fishes, Start, Salford Central Foodbank, Salford Foundation,
Connexions, Salford Credit Union, Children’s Services Early Intervention and Next
Step services
Produced an interim report in August 2014 which uncovered wide scale evidence
of sanctioning in Salford Jobcentres and rafts of evidence from agencies who were
dealing with the consequences of benefit sanctions whilst not always understanding
the cause.

31. What did the task force set out to achieve?
 Raise awareness about the DWP’s conditionality and sanctions regime;
 Understand how the regime impacts both residents and organisations;
 Find out whether the regime works for Salford residents – does it
support residents to improve skills and achieve sustained employment;
 Identify a set of recommendations to implement in the city to make
Salford an area of “best practice”.

32. What has the sanctions work
told us ?

37. What are the impacts of the
regime on Salford residents
and local organisations?

38. Impact on Salford residents, their families
and community
Eviction Debt
Food poverty
Health &
well-Being
Skills, training &
employability
Crime
Education
Illegal money
lending
Debt
Homelessness
Health &
Well-being
Food poverty
Skills, training &
employabilityCrime &
Domestic abuse

39. Sanctions leave households already in crisis with little or no
money for essential items; unable to pay household bills
including rent and utilities (adding to debt), taking out
costly loans (adding further to debt and cycle of loans),
adding to family stress and ability to cope.
Other households have previously been coping financially
but as a result of sanctions are now finding themselves in
hardship or crisis and will now require additional costly
support.’
Salford Discretionary Support Scheme.

40. 18 to 25’s are most impacted by
sanctions
0
500
1000
1500
2000
2500
3000
3500
4000
4500
18-24 25-29 30-34 35-9 40-44 45-49 50-54 55-59 60+
JSA : Decision to apply a sanction (adverse)
2013 2014 2015

41. Relationship with
service users
Change of
focus for service
delivery
Demand for
services
Cost of service
delivery
Expertise re
conditionality
& sanctions
Impact on Salford’s agencies and
services

42. ‘Anecdotally we have seen increasing numbers of patients
coming through over the last 2-3 years with mental health
problems exacerbated by the changes to the benefit system.
For some people this has led to a deterioration in an existing
mental health problem and for others, they have presented
with a new onset mental health illness, usually
depression/anxiety. This has obviously led to an increase in
GP workload with significant numbers being referred on to
our psychological therapy services.’
Dr Tom Tasker, Clinical Lead, Mental Health Salford CCG

43. Do sanctions improve employment rates?
• Officially, sanctioned claimants are allegedly not removed from the
claimant count, but the task group conclude that the conditionality
regime is leading to claimants being “bullied off the books”;
• Analysis by the Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion (November
2013) illustrates how three out of every ten people referred for sanction
‘drop’ their claim - this is double the rate in 2007. These people are
therefore removed from the claimant count – the “disappeared”
• Local Government Association research shows approximately 1 million
unemployed people are not claiming JSA;
• Connexions data in May 2015 showed 60% of registered NEET 18-24
year olds in Salford not claiming benefit any at all

44. What has the task force focussed on
since the interim report to improve
outcomes for residents and local
organisations?

45. We continue working as a partnership to
implement our interim recommendations
Supporting residents and frontline workers to understand
conditionality through training and awareness sessions
Improving communications (JCP, HB, etc)
Joint work with frontline JCP staff on identification of
“vulnerability”
Started to develop a common recording system to
evidence impact and feed up to decision
makers/commissioners
Holding the Work Programme accountable
Highlighting the need to resource support services
including Salford Credit Union, Salford Discretionary Support
Scheme, advice services
Ongoing city wide loan shark awareness campaign

47. Our top 3 achievements
 We have demonstrated the human (and fiscal) cost of benefit sanctions and this
work has provided an evidence base in the City to raise poverty and social justice
issues at a strategic and political level . City Council has committed to leading on a
new partnership strategy to tackle poverty in 2016
Improvements in local practice leading to JCP in Salford implementing
safeguarding measures to quality assure claimant commitments (focusing on ESA
claimants) also report hardship payment data for the city to the FIPG
Initiated and supported joint work with Next Step service and JCP to set up a
process to ensure young care leavers are not sanctioned which has been very
successful. We have rolled this approach out to other vulnerable claimants eg
“Troubled Families”.

48. Salford City Mayor v IDS

49. Our recommendations
• Protect the safety net (SDSS, SCU, WRADAS)
• Upskill all frontline workers eg revised Family CAF
• We must engage GMCA in this agenda
• Agreement between JCP and the task force to
continue to work towards improvement in local
practice, local accountability
• Further research particularly into the 18-25’s
• Salford’s agencies, residents groups and
politicians campaign together for an independent
inquiry into benefit sanctions

50.  DWP will only share publicly available data so we want to secure agreement
from agencies to record sanctions, to ensure our evidence base locally is robust.
We intend to work closely with local MP’s to obtain data and
will submit FOI’s
GMCA through devolution have more influence over the welfare to work
delivery model in GM so the lines of accountability around conditionality and
mandation could become blurred potentially pushing people away from support
We want to open up a dialogue using our research to ensure this evidence
influences GM commissioning
Reducing claimant numbers, a fall in adverse sanction decisions, a rise in UC
claimants both in and out of work……………………….……
We think there’s more of a story to tell……..
Our top 3 challenges

51. Local conditionality: welcome or feared?
Malcolm Gardner
The Welfare Reform Club
#GMWelCond

71. A new future for skills and employment
in Greater Manchester
Councillor Sean Anstee
Trafford Metropolitan Borough Council
#GMWelCond

72. Panel discussion
• Councillor Sean Anstee
• Peter Begg
• Professor Peter Dwyer
• Malcolm Gardner
• Katy Jones
• Dr Lisa Scullion
• Catherine Connors, Salford City Council
#GMWelCond

73. Conference Close
#GMWelCond
Dr Lisa Scullion