What exactly the work of the zygote?

What exactly does the work programme involve for lone parents?

• Im a single mother of an 8 year old boy.... I worked full time, in the same place for 12 years, since i left school at 18, but unfortunately i had to leave my job 2 yrs ago as my mother was no longer able to care for my child due to health issues. She was the only person i had to rely on for child care, my sons school does not have a breakfast or afterschool club and there are no child care facilities avliable in my area that cater for his age group. I could hire a personal nanny, but i cant afford to do so, tax credits do not cover the whole cost, only 80% of it. I would love to get back into work, and have been actively job seeking for 2 years now, with no luck as i cant be as flexible with the hours i can work as employers seem to require. I am claiming JSA at present, and the job center are sending me on a work programme starting in february, but have given me no details as to what this involves ... How many days a week is it? What exactly do they do? Will they take my childcare needs into consideration? Thanks

• Answer:

  I can't speak from personal experience but I know that the work programme should take your childcare needs into account because the Jobcentre allows you to limit the hours you can work in the jobs you are looking for, so the work programme should do the same and let you fit it in with school hours. No one can really say what happens on the work programme because it's run by different companies and providers and they all do it differently. My son's just started it at the moment with Reed in Partnership, so I only know a bit about that one, he's not a lone parent but the approach is probably similar. Basically they tell you you'll get a job if you have the right 'mindset' and you have personal interviews with an advisor and there's some group work, it's quite structured, you have workbooks to identify your strengths and weaknesses, attitudes, barriers to work etc. He's been on it a few weeks and there has been the odd days going for an interview with the advisor or a couple of days here and there of group work, but it starts properly in the New Year when they do something called 'the journey', it's all a bit American style motivational, they seem to have a contact with one employer they are sending people to if they think they are up to it, but otherwise it seems a bit of a waste of time (and taxpayers' money) as there on average 5.7 unemployed people to every vacancy in the UK at the moment and they aren't all going to be lucky. You may not find it that helpful if your main problem is with the hours and flexibility, so don't go expecting too much. You can look at the website of the provider to see if they have anything about what they do, Reed has quite a lot about the 'winning 3G mindset' as one of the directors co-wrote a motivational book about it, but as I said they're all different so you might be spared that.