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'Allow us to pay unemployed for community work'
By Andy Ricketts, Third Sector Online, 30 May 2008
Community associations should be allowed to pay unemployed people to do community work without it affecting their benefits, a group of third sector organisations has told the Government.
The Create Consortium has met Stephen Timms, the employment minister, in a bid to persuade the Government to pilot the idea, which the consortium is calling the “community allowance”.
The consortium is made up of representatives from umbrella bodies the British Urban Regeneration Association and the Development Trusts Association, government advisory body the National Community Forum, east London charity Community Links and social enterprise Slivers of Time.
It is asking for people to be allowed to earn up to £4,305 a year for carrying out work in their local communities without it affecting their benefit entitlements. The sum is equivalent to what someone would earn working 15 hours a week at the minimum wage.
Naomi Alexander, co-ordinator for the consortium, said the meeting with Timms had been positive. “There is no available data on the benefits of this because it would be illegal to do it,” she said. “So we want to gather the evidence by having the permission to do a pilot.”
Alexander also urged supporters to lobby their local MPs to back the proposal.
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All Comments Make a comment
Max Sherman, 30 May 2008, 12:00
I don't agree with this. This just continues to encourage them to stay unemployed. Any money earned should be deducted from their already overpaid benefits.[Report this post]
kate warlow-hughes, 30 May 2008, 19:12
I would like Mr Sherman to live on the so called overpaid benifits. there are all sorts of "work " a person cando for the community whether they are active or disabled as i am . out of pocket pay would at times be very useful as most people who work within the community do so from there heart not their head . maybe you could use yours!![Report this post]
Jack Scott, 30 May 2008, 19:21
Nonsense.This is a really good idea. We have got to realise that employment comes more easily to some people than others and so stepping stones can be required.
Achieving 80% employment in Britain would save and enhance the Treasury to the tune of £20bn. The money this scheme saves in the long term could potentially far out-weigh the miniscule £4000 initial investment from the state.
I will watch with interest.
[Report this post]
john routledge, 2 June 2008, 11:55
It's interesting that some professionals receive substantial 'allowances' for sitting on publicly funded bodies without deductions from their salary. This idea could work but will have to be done in a way that is fair and sensitive to the millions of working people on low incomes...[Report this post]