It’s off to work we go - new Gingerbread report on single parents and JSA

From today 124,000 single parents with children aged five or six will be moved onto Jobseeker’s Allowance (JSA) with only eight weeks’ notice, depriving thousands of the chance to start and complete a further education course as their child starts school, vital for their prospects of a decent job in the future.

Analysis for Gingerbread by the Work Foundation, reveals that one in five single parents who find a job are unemployed again within 12 months.  Access to further education is vital to supporting single earner families to get off benefits, out of poverty, and into stable jobs.

Gingerbread is calling for:
* Single parents with children aged five and six who take up further education courses to be treated as fulfilling work search obligations
* Financial help towards childcare costs for those working less than 16 hours a week via the flexible support fund
* Support from Jobcentre Plus advisors trained in single parent issues.

For a copy of the press release and a link to the report, It’s off to work we go, click here: 124,000 single parents “collateral damage” in rushed roll-out of welfare reforms