Written question WQ87509

We are investing £13m in a successor service to the European funded Out of Work Service which ended in August 2022. The new Out of Work Service which commenced in October 2022 has the capacity to support over 10,500 participants by March 2025, who are recovering from mental ill-health and/or substance misuse and who are Long-Term Unemployed, Economically Inactive or Not in Education, Employment or Training (NEET).

Together with the participant, a peer mentor will work out an informal set of activities to help overcome those barriers, with a focus on sustaining and stabilising recovery and enabling participants to manage setbacks without relapsing. The ultimate goal is to help people into education or employment, but many will also receive support in the rebuilding of confidence and interpersonal skills, budgeting skills, advocacy around housing, medical care and the accessing of financial support.