This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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New gateway to work for Clyde Coast and Renfrew
27/11/1998
The Clyde Coast and Renfrew will be one of 12 pilot areas in Britain for the Single Work Focused Gateway, Scottish Business and Industry Minister Lord Macdonald announced today.
Lord Macdonald said:
"I am pleased that Scotland is to participate in the pilot exercise of this new and exciting initiative which is aimed at helping benefit clients move from welfare to work. The Clyde Coast and Renfrew area will be at the forefront of a new culture for welfare. The Single Gateway will allow all benefit clients the chance to overcome barriers, and is the cornerstone of the Government's philosophy for welfare reform - work for those who can, support for those who cannot.
"Through the Single Gateway, all new benefit clients will have access to a personal adviser, who will identify their individual needs and help them move towards work."
The Single Gateway will integrate the activities currently carried out by the Benefits Agency, the Employment Service and local authorities, with the intention of streamlining the welfare system.
BACKGROUND
1. The 12 Single Gateway pilot areas are Clyde Coast and Renfrew, Essex South East, Warwickshire, Lea Roding (all beginning June 1999), Somerset, Buckinghamshire, Gwent Borders, Calderdale and Kirklees, Suffolk, North Nottinghamshire, Leeds, and North Cheshire (all from November 1999).
2. The Single Work Focused Gateway was announced on October 28 in the DSS/DfEE paper New Ambitions for our Country: The Gateway to Work. It marks a step change in the welfare system, moving from the current system which categorises clients, depending on whether they are unemployed, lone parents, carers or face illness or disability.
3. Under the Single Gateway, all clients will be allocated a personal adviser, responsible for establishing their individual needs and providing them with the help they need to become independent and move towards work.
News Release: 2498/98
27 November 1998