Guidance

Chapter 8: Exiting the programme and outcomes

Updated 10 May 2023

Applies to England and Wales

High Level Must Do’s

1. Providers should ensure that accurate and timely Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) IT system action is taken to record Extension periods and end dates, where required.

2. Providers must complete an Intensive Personalised Employment Support (IPES) Progress Report for all Participants when provision has ended, including those who are disengaged and those in employment. Outputs from Case Conferences should be recorded on the IPES Progress Report.

3. Providers must complete an IPES Exit Activity Plan for those Participants who are still engaged on leaving provision but have not gone into work, or are transitioning to employer-led support, where still in work at the end of the final period of In-Work Support (IWS).

4. Provider must complete the required reports and/or plans within 10 days of provision ending, ensuring you meet your General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) obligations when processing personal data about Participants. Where requested, IPES Progress Reports must be issued to DWP within 10 days.

Data Protection Legislation and Data Sharing

You must ensure that you follow the requirements around Data Protection Legislation and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) taking into account your Contract Terms & Conditions.

In relation to the sharing of data, providers should also adhere to all requirements as laid out in Generic Provider Guidance Chapter 8 – Information Security.

Exiting Provision

8.01. Once a Participant starts IPES provision they will remain on that provision until they exit, either as an early completer or a completer.

8.02. A Participant may exit IPES provision for the following reasons:

• they have completed their allotted time on provision – see Completing Full Provision below, or
• they have exited early under the circumstances listed below – see Completing Provision Early

Completing Full Provision

8.03. A Participant is deemed as completing the provision (a Completer) in any of the following circumstances:

• they have completed 456 days on provision and are not in employment at day 457
• the IPES provision has been extended to allow for a minimum of 182 days of IWS and they have reached the maximum provision duration of 639 days. This includes an extra day for Participants who work night shifts (where their shift starts on day 638 and ends on day 639)
• they have completed at least 456 days on IPES provision, are receiving IWS, and their employment (or self-employment) ends
• where the Participant:
  • has reached the higher threshold outcome, and
  • has received a minimum of 182 days of IWS (for their current job), and
  • the Provider determines that their support is no longer required

8.04. If action to extend provision by 182 days has been completed before day 456, and the Participant is receiving IWS on day 457, IWS will continue, allowing the Participant up to day 639 in which to receive IWS and for the Provider to achieve the higher threshold outcome. The Participant’s time on provision will then automatically end at 639 days, unless employment ends during the extension period, in which case the provision will end, and the Provider will need to take appropriate action to end the Participant on provision.

8.05. The system will automatically calculate and record the end date for a Participant based on the start date and if extended, the extension date which you will have input (with the exception of Early Completers listed in para 8.09).

8.06. An early end date will need to be input to Provider Referrals and Payments (PRaP) manually if the Participant obtains and reaches the higher threshold outcome before day 456 of the provision period, and they have also received 182 days In-Work Support for the current job.

8.07. For a list of relevant IPES PRaP leaver codes, please refer to Chapter 3, Annex 3.2 of this IPES Guidance.

Completing Provision Early

8.08. A participant is an Early Completer if IPES provision is no longer appropriate for them but only where the following change of circumstances apply:

• when a Participant moves outside of England or Wales (for a period longer than the remaining time on IPES provision)
• when a Participant has been diagnosed with a terminal illness and chooses to leave IPES provision; or
• when a Participant has died

8.09. If a Participant completes provision early, you must enter the early end date manually in PRaP. If the Participant dies, their actual date of death must be recorded and not the date that the notification of the Participant’s death was received.

8.10. You are not required to produce IPES Progress Reports and IPES Exit Activity Plans for Participants who complete IPES provision early due to a change in circumstances as detailed in this section.

Employment Outcomes and end of employment on provision

IPES Employment Outcomes

8.11. Where a Participant finds employment (or self-employment), they can achieve the lower or higher payment thresholds at any time during the period they are on IPES provision. However, they must be receiving In-Work Support on day 457 onwards to allow you to extend their time on provision up to the maximum of 639 days. Extending the provision allows a Participant the maximum time available to achieve one or both of the threshold outcomes.

8.12. Where Participants achieve the higher outcome threshold, they do not automatically complete provision. Participants will stay on provision up to day 639 unless the Participant has received a minimum of 182 days of In-Work Support (for their current job), and you, the Provider, determine that the Participant no longer requires your support to sustain employment. In these circumstances you will manually enter the end date on PRaP.

Employment Ends

8.13. If a Participant’s employment (or self-employment) ends before day 456, the Participant moves back into Pre-Work Support.

8.14. However, Participants cannot remain on, or return to, Pre-Work Support between days 457 and 639. This period is designated as the period for In-Work Support only, and if Participants are not employed during this period, they must exit the provision.

8.15. You will be required to update the Participant’s Action Plan with the detailed In-Work Support activity for every period of employment. See Chapter 4 on Action Planning and para 4.36 for the Employer Support Plan.

8.16. When the IWS ends, IPES provision ends and the Participant must be exited from provision, and PRaP updated accordingly.

8.17. Full detail on the action required to update PRaP can be found in the IPES-specific PRaP Guidance, available through PRaP (UPK).

End Dates for IPES Provision

Manual End Dates

8.18. Providers must record the end date for a Participant on PRaP manually in the following circumstances:

• where the Participant completes the provision early (see Early Completer at 8.07); or
• between day 456 and day 639 where the Participant has received 182 days of IWS, has achieved the higher outcome threshold and support is no longer required; or
• where the Participant has lost their job during the extension period beyond day 456 but before day 639

8.19. For a list of relevant IPES PRaP leaver codes, please refer to Chapter 3, Annex 3.2 of this IPES Guidance.

Automatic End Dates

8.20. IPES provision will automatically end on PRaP in the following circumstances:

• when day 456 has been reached and no extension has been entered, or
• on day 639, when an extension has been entered

IPES Progress Reports and IPES Exit Activity Plans

8.21. Depending on the Participant’s circumstances when provision ends, the IPES Progress Report and the IPES Exit Activity Plan must be completed by you, the provider.

8.22. Both the IPES Progress Report and the IPES Exit Activity Plan must be completed as per this guidance and the IPES Specification. The relevant report(s) must be produced within 10 working days of IPES provision ending. This is a Customer Service Standard against which you will be measured.

8.23. As a reminder, you are not required to produce IPES Progress Reports and IPES Exit Activity Plans for Participants who complete IPES provision early due to a change in circumstances detailed at para 8.07-8.10.

8.24. Important: You must comply with Data Protection Legislation when processing the IPES Progress Report, as you must throughout your whole delivery of the provision.

The IPES Progress Report

The IPES Progress Report is completed for all Participants [except Early Completers] when provision has ended, including those who are disengaged and those in employment or self-employment. The IPES Progress Report will be shared with the Jobcentre, if requested.

8.25. A copy is not shared with the Participant, but they should be informed that the Progress Report may be shared with the Jobcentre.

8.26. A copy of the IPES Progress Report for each Participant must be retained by the Provider for the period of the contract, for audit purposes and must also be retained to comply with contractual document retention provisions.

8.27. The IPES Progress Report must as a minimum include the following factual information:

• participant surname
• participant National Insurance number (NINO)
• the reason the provision has ended
• any progress the Participant has made whilst on provision
• any experience the Participant has gained in a working environment. If the Participant does not have this experience, you should provide an explanation
• the next steps for the Participant when they leave IPES

8.28. The IPES Progress Report should also include additional information that may be helpful to the Jobcentre and the Participant in planning future work focussed activity, such as:

• details of ongoing requirements, focussing on what the Participant can do
• employability - your opinion on the Participant’s employment prospects and the type of employment which might be most appropriate going forward
• any qualifications, training or skills acquired whilst on provision
• details of any changes to job goals, etc.
• details of improved health or wellbeing from attending provision – how the Participant benefited from IPES, and the progress against the activities undertaken by the Participant whilst on IPES
• engagement – your opinion on how the Participant engaged with you whilst on the programme, including any possible reasons which may be useful in determining further support for the Participant; and
• details of barriers to employment overcome or reduced – any barriers that:
  • you have seen the Participant overcome
  • are still to be addressed
  • have arisen whilst on the Participant was on IPES; or
  • any health conditions or substance dependency the Participant may have, with possible on-going support and medical treatment

8.29. The IPES Progress Report should include meaningful and personalised information which will provide the Jobcentre with additional information and an insight to the Participant’s journey on IPES.

8.30. To further support this insight into the Participant’s journey, key points and agreed actions from the Case Conferences should also be recorded on the IPES Progress Report. You will therefore need to keep a record of key points and agreed actions from the Case Conferences on the Participant’s Action Plan in order to reproduce them on the IPES Progress Report

8.31. The key points and agreed actions from the Case Conferences should be recorded in the Further Information section on Page 3 of the IPES Progress Report.

8.32. Further information on Case Conferences can be found in Chapter 13 of this IPES Guidance.

8.33. The IPES Progress Report should ideally contain at least 500 words written by the Participant’s Key Worker. If the Participant disengaged for a considerable length of time, the IPES Progress Report should be noted with details to show why it is less than 500 words in these instances.

8.34. The IPES Progress Report must be produced within 10 working days of provision ending and a copy issued to the Jobcentre, on request.

IPES Progress Report Request received from the Jobcentre

8.35. The request for a copy of the IPES Progress Report may not be received immediately after provision has ended but it is important, that the IPES Progress Report is produced within 10 days of provision ending for each Participant (as per CSS 5) and stored safely until the request is received.

8.36. Where JCP request a copy of the IPES Progress Report. You will receive an email from the Jobcentre to your nominated in-box containing the form IPESPR07. The IPESPR07 form will contain the following information:

• date of request
• return email address
• return postal address (if required for example, MAPPA/SCR)
• participant name
• participant NINo
• provision end date
• participant owning jobcentre

8.37. On receipt of the IPESPR07, you should use the information contained on it to:

• update the Participant’s record on your system, indicating that the request has been received
• ensure the IPES Progress Report has been fully completed and dated

8.38. You should then send the requested IPES Progress Report to the return email address on the form IPESPR07, via unencrypted email within 10 working days of it being requested.

The IPES Exit Activity Plan

8.39. The IPES Exit Activity Plan must be agreed and produced when provision ends at day 456 and the Participant is not in work but still engaging, or when you transition support over to the employer (or the support network), where the Participant is still in work at the end of final period of IWS. It must outline the next steps for the Participant, including any further support needed.

8.40. Where the Participant is still engaging with you, but their employment comes to an end between day 457 and day 639, they will exit the provision, and you should complete the IPES Exit Activity Plan, outlining next steps for the Participant.

8.41. The IPES Exit Activity Plan will be completed by the Key Worker with the Participant and will outline the key activities and support for Participants leaving IPES provision, both when the In-Work Support is transitioned to the employer or support network, or, where appropriate, upon their return to the Jobcentre.

8.42. The IPES Exit Activity Plan must be completed within 10 working days of the Participant leaving provision and should ideally contain at least 500 words written by the Participant’s Key Worker.

8.43. A copy of the IPES Exit Activity Plan must be sent to the Participant within 10 working days of IPES provision ending.

8.44. The IPES Exit Activity Plan must, as a minimum, include the following factual information:

• participant name
• participant National Insurance number (NINO)
• next steps – If returning to the Jobcentre, your recommendations on the most appropriate next steps for the Participant, including alternative provision
• next steps – If the Participant is not a claimant – details of the most appropriate next steps, which must be work focussed and include contacts at the Jobcentre for future support if needed
  • also details of other provision which may be relevant to the Participant
• next steps – If continuing in work with employer, which should be linked to the Employer Support plan as appropriate
• next steps – If continuing self-employment – this may detail the support expected from their support network.

8.45. Where the Participant is continuing in work, the IPES Exit Activity Plan should detail any support, reasonable adjustments, necessary equipment, or ongoing support needs that the Participant requires to sustain employment. This should include information about any Access to Work applications. The IPES Exit Activity Plan must show how the employer will continue to support the Participant in their job, working with the Participant’s support network as appropriate, and ensuring the Participant knows how to access Jobcentre support in future.

8.46. Key points and agreed actions from the Case Conferences should also be recorded on the IPES Exit Activity Plan as these will provide information for the Participant on what they have achieved during their time on IPES provision.

Note: You will therefore need to keep a record of key points and agreed actions from the Case Conferences on the Participant’s Action Plan in order to reproduce them on the IPES Exit Activity Plan

8.47. The IPES Exit Activity Plan is only issued to the Participant, and it is up to the Participant whom they share this information with. Participants may share their IPES Exit Activity Plan with their employers, and that should be encouraged but if a Participant is not happy to do so, this must be respected.

8.48. For Participants in employment, there must be a handover between the Key Worker and the employer at the point the Participant completes IPES provision.

Employer Support Plan

8.49. For Participants moving into work, an Employer Support Plan must be completed and issued to the employer within 10 working days of the Participant starting employment, with the exception of self-employment, where the support must be via the Provider and/or the support network.

8.50. In relation to the sharing of data, providers should adhere to all requirements as laid out in Generic Provider Guidance Chapter 8 – Information Security.

8.51. The Employer Support Plan must set out the support the Provider will give to the Participant and the employer during the IWS period to help the Participant sustain employment. It will also include the Participant’s support needs from the employer after the Provider is no longer involved, beyond the period of IWS.

8.52. The Employer Support Plan should be updated and document the transition from support offered by you, the Provider, to support offered by the Participant’s wider support network, including the employer, when the Participant leaves provision. It should be available for DWP to check, where requested.

8.53. For further information on the Employer Support Plan, please refer to Chapter 4 of this guidance. The same level of support will be expected for those Participants who choose to become self-employed. It is not intended that you act in a small business adviser capacity, rather you should continue to support the Participant with on-going management of their barriers to work as you would with an employed Participant. Providers should signpost the Participant towards agencies that can support them with appropriate business advice.

Participant disengages

8.54. A Participant disengages when they are not able or willing to engage with you, the Provider. This could occur due to the changing health of a Participant, or if they otherwise fail to attend an appointment or participate in an agreed activity. When a Participant is not able or willing to engage, the Participant will remain on the IPES programme, and you will be expected to make efforts to re-engage with them and resume support when the Participant indicates they wish to resume provision. A Participant who disengages before day 456 is entitled to re-engage up to day 456.

8.55. For further information on disengaged Participants and Participants with fluctuating health conditions, please refer to Chapter 4 of this guidance.

Re-referrals to IPES Provision

8.56. Participants can be considered for re-referral, subject to their Work Coach’s re-assessment on whether a re-referral is the most suitable option for them at that time. Participants who have been unable to complete their IPES provision may be re-referred back to IPES in the future. For example, this may be appropriate where a Participant’s journey is disrupted due to a long hospital stay and they have not been able to participate for the full provision duration.

8.57. For further information on Re-referrals to IPES provision, please refer to Chapter 4 of this IPES guidance

Participant moves to another geographical area

8.58. Where a Participant moves to another Contract Package Area (CPA) within England or Wales, they will remain the responsibility of the original Provider. It will be up to the original Provider to arrange appropriate support via their strategic partners to deliver the service requirement until the end of the Participant’s IPES provision.

8.59. For Participants who move outside of England and Wales for a period that is expected to be longer than their remaining time on IPES provision, their IPES provision will end. Any potential Participants who move to England or Wales from Scotland or Northern Ireland will be considered for any relevant provision, including IPES, using the agreed Jobcentre referral routes