Supporting lone parents’ journey off benefits and into work: a qualitative evaluation of the role of In Work Credit (RR712)
Qualitative evaluation of the delivery of In Work Credit (IWC) since national roll-out in April 2008.
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By Lorraine Sims, Jo Casebourne, Laurie Bell and Malen Davies
In Work Credit (IWC) is a non-taxable weekly payment of £40 (£60 in London districts). It is paid for a maximum of 52 weeks to lone parents moving into paid employment of 16 hours per week or more, who have had a period of 12 months or more on out-of-work benefits. The policy intent of IWC is to increase lone parent employment rates by encouraging more lone parents to look for work and to move from benefits into work, as well as to contribute to the Government’s target of reducing child poverty. Since it was rolled out nationally in April 2008, 118,100 individuals have received IWC (April 2008 to the end of March 2010. Source: Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)).
The Centre for Economic and Social Inclusion was commissioned by the DWP to carry out a qualitative evaluation of the delivery of IWC since national roll-out, investigate the effect on retention after the end of IWC and examine differences between those who completed their claim and those who did not. In addition, the research examined the wider impact of being in work on lone parents and their children.