Unpaid internships

Cl is 22 yrs and currently working, they are about to start a thee month unpaid internship. Is this, with the agreement of the work coach,  capable of being treated as ‘work preparation’ under s.16 of the WRA 2012 and UC remaining payable?

Whether he is working, doing unpaid work or doing no work at all is not going to affect the essential issue of whether UC is payable. The issues are going to be around (1) whether he risks a higher level sanction by giving up his present job to pursue the internship (the answer is probably “yes”) and (2) whether the internship will be consistent with his work-related requirements - also risking sanction.

If he is subject to all work-related requirements, then the DWP can allow voluntary work to count as up to 50% of his work search hours. I assume that would apply here, but they are still likely to want to see some evidence of searching for other work.

“Work preparation” refers to specific activity which a claimant is from time to time required to do by the DWP. I don’t see that they can just co-opt something that your client is already doing and call it work preparation and it would probably not be in your client’s interests for it to become a sanctionable failure to bring the internship to an end.

As he is a young person he could ask to be considered for the official UC Work Experience scheme which can be extended to 3 months.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/employers-could-you-offer-work-experience

There are some other easements for Care Leavers under the Care Leaver Covenant.

The issue is that he needs to have a ” good reason ” for giving up his paid employment.

Is his Work Coach in favour of this move? At the end of the day it is the Work Coach who is in charge of conditionality and submitting the Sanction To Do to the DM.