The New Deal Scandal: Flexible New Deal blog (http://www.newdealscandal.co.uk/flexiblenewdeal/) is a part of the Flexible New Deal Scandal Network.

Government keeps Ipswich Detention Centre open

No prosecutions for New Deal Fraud

New Deal Scandal can reveal that the Department for Work and Pensions has no intention for making any prosecutions for prime contractors deliberately defrauding the system. The Department for Work and Pensions currently has no plans of stopping Flexible New Deal contracts being awarded to prime contractors who have previously defrauded the system on numerous occassions for the New Deal contracts. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

517 London Road planning permission finally applied for

YMCA Training had been using 517 London Road since April 2003. Ipswich Unemployed Action has reported that over 6 years later they have submitted a retrospective planning application to gain D1 consent.

This came long after a year when they had enforcement action taken against them for not having D1 consent for Dencora House.  They are also applying for permanent consent after receiving a year trial of D1 consent lasting a year had expired.

Use of Building for D1 purposes, 517 London Road, Ipswich

1. This statement relates to a retrospective planning application for the change of use of a former business premises involving elements of warehousing, manufacturing and office use, at 517 London Road. The site forms part of a small cluster of employment and commercial uses. To the east of the site are extensive residential areas.

2. Planning permission is sought for the use of the premises to a non-residential training centre (Use Class D1) operated by YMCA Training, a major training provided in the town, providing variety of training programmes for the state sector, public sector and private companies. The use has been operating from the site since April 2003.

Documents to download from New Deal Scandal for inspection:

New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform: network snippet

Just a brief overall of recent content on ”New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform” blog. This might be easier to some then using WordPress pages as some sticky posts make normal ones difficult to see sometimes. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

New Deal: New Deal providers are exempt from local planning laws

Call it another scandal if you wish, it seems that New Deal providers are exempt from planning legislation.

Banbury based YMCA Training, who have recently viewed this site today (leave a comment and say hello)  manages to deliver New Deal training courses without first acquiring the required D1 planning consent.

If you know of any others let me know.

Update: Added “Lambourne House” – Havering has responded to me stating they don’t have D1 consent and they should apply for retrospective planning permission costing around £335 for an application if they still use the building.

New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform: network snippet

Just a brief overall of recent content on ”New Deal Scandal & Welfare Reform” and “Ipswich Unemployed Action” blogs.  This might be easier to some then using Wordpress pages as some sticky posts make normal ones difficult to see sometimes.  Read more on New Deal Scandal »

16.24% New Deal Provider: YMCA Training contract terminated?

We are hearing reports that YMCA Training, a New Deal provider that managed a Job Outcome rate of 16.24%, has had its contract terminated. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

Posted in New Deal, YMCA Training. Tags: , .
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Update: QDP Services & YMCA Training

We recently reported that YMCA Training is disclosing past New Deal participants personal and confidential details which they should no longer hold, to a company called QDP Services, without the New Deal participants permission.

I thought it would be best to follow up this by quoting Q D P Services‘ pledge regarding handling confidential information.

It is best to point out that QDP Services are not to blame for the data disclosure – it is YMCA Training who kept the confidential data longer than required, a breach of the Data Protection Act 1998 and then disclosed it without permission.

QDP Services, however, are accountable for the” anonymous” survey which is tracked.

Read more on New Deal Scandal »

Posted in Dencora House, Ipswich, New Deal, YMCA Training. Tags: , , , .
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New Deal: YMCA Training discloses confidential information to tracking statistic firm

YMCA Training has, without their New Deal participants consent, sent their contact details to some statistics company who has contacted them asking to complete an anonymous survey on the YMCA Training New Deal courses.

This company, however, uses a unique tracking code to check up on who said what – not anonymous – and the letter contained details advising the person taking the survey that they wouldn’t be able to be traced. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

Posted in Dencora House, Ipswich, New Deal, YMCA Training. Tags: , , .
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New Deal fraud technique: “exiting”

The illegal act of:

  1. Acknowledging that regardless of the actual period of time the New Deal participant spends on the course they will get the full amount for the entire 13 weeks, unless they exceed their absence limit where they wont
  2. Short listing those who appear not to be able to make the entire 13 weeks or those who are close to exceeding permitted absence limits to be dismissed – those who seem likely to “drop out” will not award provider with Job Outcome bonuses thus are surplus to requirements and those that are close to the limit regardless of being in their rights and not committing an offence are likely to become a liability to limit the amount projected to be received.
  3. Acknowledging that the Jobseeker cannot appeal or prevent being dismissed, has no rights to find out the reason for dismissal or have a chance to put right/get a second chance,  and that it takes immediate effect.
  4. Short listing random people for dismissal to ease overcrowding of training centres
  5. Making false declarations under oath of a disclaimer claiming reasons for dismissals as rather severe (misconduct, Health and safety concerns etc.) all being lies, knowing that the Dismissal Form has a sole purpose of helping a Decision Maker impose sanctions on a jobseeker, who doesn’t get to see such a form.
  6. Tell the Jobseeker verbally an entire  different story (such as due to attitude, not contributing enough etc.) consisting of rather mild reasons, so when he or she becomes required to give reasons why the training course ended or appeals to a decision of benefit sanctions,  the jobseeker merely complains about something irrelevant to the actual stated reason and becomes sanctioned as a result.
  7. When a Decision Maker writes to the Training Provider, the training provider delays the reply so when the Decision Maker writes to the Jobseeker, he or she doesn’t get a copy of the answers provided as the system is intended to do.
  8. Now that the people were exited – the training providers profit margins further reach the projections.

… is known as “exiting“. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

Posted in New Deal, YMCA Training, dwp. Tags: , , , , , , .
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New Deal fraud investigation: Reed in Partnership

Several years ago Reed in Partnership were investigated over 13 employees who has forged placements for those who had signed off to gain bonuses and also used the Employment Services data of New Deal candidates that found work outside of Reed to top up missed targets, totalling an expected multi-million pound fraud.

This was back in 2001, what have the Department for Work and Pensions learned since then?

It appears that the Government is still very slow in picking up on fraud – with the departments executive agency Jobcentre Plus ignoring complaints from Jobseekers and New Deal participants, and generally having a very laid back attitude, turning a blind eye approach to working in partnership with these external providers it can’t be surprising the failings of these fraud investigation teams they have.

For one, Ipswich Unemployed Action have reported that YMCA Training, a New Deal training provider, didn’t have planning consent for providing their services – the New Deal contract team that are supposed to monitor service delivery of contracts are, yes you guessed it, a Jobcentre Plus department and NOT Department for Work and Pensions who award the contracts. Before signing the contract training providers have to submit plans and details of the proposed premises for approval – it appears they couldn’t be bothered to do a 5 minute online planning permission check on the property (or alternatively ring Ipswich Borough Council direct).

Even though Jobcentre Plus is an executive agency of the Department for Work and Pensions (sorry for any confusion above) and that the DWP is reportedly corrupt, it seems like one team inside the DWP are checking via audits etc. the forms and such like for suspicious signatures and information for alleged fraud, while all along Jobcentre Plus staff such as New Deal Personal Advisers are even aware and support the acts of fraud happening in the system.

When will the Department for Work and Pensions learn?

Reed article source: http://www.recruiter.co.uk/

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Refuse New Deal VSO Programme Provision: NDYP ND25 IAP

It has came to our attention that the Department for Work and Pensions’ Executive Agency Jobcentre Plus is trying to push as many people in to the New Deal courses before it ends and become replaced with Flexible New Deal.

This is NOT legit and you CAN get out of it. Read on. Read more on New Deal Scandal »

Posted in New Deal, YMCA Training. Tags: , , , , , , , , , , .
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YMCA Training traded without planning permission over 6 months

It has been discovered that Dencora House in Ipswich, a training centre run and rented by YMCA Training didn’t have planning permission for over 6 months.  To run a training centre you require D1 planning consent. Dencora House and it’s 10 units all had B1 Offices planning consent.  When YMCA Training, one of the largest training providers with 31 years experience and over 40 locations, rented units  it was unaware of the law and therefore traded without permission.

Ipswich Borough Council took enforcement action when they discovered that they were illegally trading when they only had consent for offices. The council forced them to apply for planning permission.  After YMCA Training were responsible for a long list of problems including damage to cars, litter and noise disturbances – the neighbouring businesses downstairs of Dencora House and in the local area appealed against their application.

It wasn’t until July that year where they were granted full planning permission to change use from B1 offices to D1 non-residential training centre for a year trial period. It will expire July 31st 2009.

It is not known why DWP and Jobcentre Plus didn’t notice that they did not have planning permission when they did their checks to see if the training centre was up to a required standard to be used for New Deal.

Feel free to view the below posts about each attempt:

YMCA Training files Human Rights violation dismissal under Health & Safety

YMCA Training who has dismissed a New Deal participant in just little over 30 minutes of the New Deal course Induction Week due to conflict of personal opinion (breach of the “Freedom of Expression”/”Freedom of Speech” and “Freedom of Thought”/”Freedom of Conscience” Human Rights) has justified their reason as such views were a “Health and Safety concern“.

This is obviously complete nonsense.  The Jobcentre however warranted their request for dismissal even though staff were said to be against their reasons.  The participant therefore is likely to be pending 26 week sanctions

YMCA Training bans Jobseekers right of Freedom of Conscience

So… the Government sticks the unemployed who are out of work more than 6 months on to an intensive course called New Deal which is contracted out to organisations such as faith organisation YMCA Training who are supposedly meant to stick New Deal participants in work placements to gain experience and help them find employment.

Enter Andrew Coates, someone who has protested peacefully on an online blog of a newly formed group called Ipswich Unemployed Action about the mistreatment of New Deal participants on the course at YMCA Training’s Dencora House (who were providing such courses without planning consent) – with the group’s other members.

After 30 minutes, an YMCA Training manager and another member of staff removes Andrew from the room and summons him to a meeting with copies of the blog on the table in front of him.

It is apparent that the Freedom of Thought (known in there as “Freedom of Conscience”) mentioned in the Induction Pack wasn’t applicable.  Not only now has he been rejected for thinking different (it might be best also to state that he wasn’t exercising his Freedom of Expression, he didn’t disclose his views with anyone else in the room) he is now without benefits and pending a 26 week sanction.

A lot of the disputed content wasn’t even posted from himself, none of the content was slanderous or libel in nature and he also got the blame for people accessing the blog via their computer systems before he actually was on the course.

Numerous bloggers have picked up on this story – so this may not have been the first you have heard of it.

I ask YMCA Training: why was Andrew rejected from this course? Why have you gone against your principles??

Posted in Dencora House, Ipswich, New Deal, YMCA Training. Tags: , , , , , , , , , .
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