work programme - mandatory wra notice

[dozeymare]

Feeling and doing are two different things.

 

These people are just stressing me put completely - just to get them off my back for 5 mins would be nice

 

I cannot do 3 full days on a course which I have no idea which it involves :mad2:

[Lapsed Workaholic]

Having succumbed to the pressure and attended the course that you were referred to back in October without making any formal complaints/objections, it should come as no surprise to you that they will now sign you up for every course going that they might profit by.

 

You were given sound advice back in October and had you taken it the last course need not have been attended and this one probably would not have been suggested. It will now be harder, but not impossible, to reverse this MAN.

 

Temper tantrums and throwing wobblies will get you nowhere fast. I have included an outline of a letter that you could send to the manager of the premises you attend if you are serious about contesting the current referral. You might also refer back to the aforementioned sound advice.

 

..............................................................................................[Your Address]

..............................................................................................[Date]

To Manager [Name if Known]

[Address of Premises]

Ref: Formal Request for Reconsideration of Mandatory Activity Notice.

I, [Your Name, N.I. Number............], hereby formally request that you reconsider the Mandatory Activity Notification (MAN) issued by [Adviser Name] on [Date] presumably at your behest. Please be so good too as to regard this letter as formal notification of my dissatisfaction with the way in which your staff, under your direction, are inappropriately administering the Work Programme provision, specifically as it is applied in my case.

I would draw you attention initially to Paragraph 6 of the DWP Guidance Document -

"Operational guidance >> Get Britain Working >> Work Programme >> Work Programme Referral"

recently updated, which states:

6. It (the Work Programme) is built around the needs of individuals, providing the support they need when they need it. Providers will be free to design support based on the needs of individuals and target the right support at the right time, regardless of the benefit the claimant is in receipt of.

 

The Work Programme Provider Guidance sets out in Paragraph 33:

 

33. When developing the MAN, you must adhere to the policy, procedural and legal requirements because a sanction can only be considered for non-compliance if the participant was correctly notified:

 

i.e. the specific action that they are required to undertake as part of mandatory participation.

Paragraph 49 allows the participant to request a reconsideration if s/he considers it inappropriate in his/her circumstances:

 

49. Mandatory ESA and IS participants may request a reconsideration of any activity they have been mandated to undertake. Where they do so you must look again at the activity and take into account why the participant does not feel the activity is appropriate, reconsider if the activity remains reasonable and appropriate in the participant’s circumstances.

In the terms and conditions of your own contract with DWP I have been illegally mandated on the following grounds:

(a) no details of any specific action/actions that I am required to undertake have been explained or described to me in the MAN. In fact the adviser making the referral was not aware of what the course involved;

 

(b) no consideration whatsoever has been given to any of my individual requirements, needs or support. Being unaware of the contents/objectives of the course I believe the adviser is in no position to decide upon its suitability for me or my individual circumstances, and I am prevented from exercising my rights under Paragraph 49;

Consequently, I have to inform you now, that the MAN received 20th Dec 2015 is not a legally enforceable referral document and I shall not be participating in any activity it purports to mandate me to.

[i don't know what ails you or how it affects, or is affected by, your participation in the courses that you are being referred to, but you could add here a detailed account of your last course and your objections to it, what good it did, how it affected your health, as well as the way you were not informed beforehand of its contents or any good you were expected to glean from it. A well prepared/presented derogatory review may go a long way to persuading them how inappropriate their suggested courses really are as far as you are concerned.]

 

[tfp]

I wonder if what dozeymare has experienced is par for the course. I suspect it is. Esp. with regards not being told what such 'courses' entail and the advisers being totally clueless.

 

Sadly it takes me back around a decade. I was about to attend A4e. I asked the useless adviser what the so called course at A4e entailed and what would I be doing during the 13 weeks of my attendance. She could not answer. All I got instead was an A4 photocopy of an A4e brochure!!!

 

So it surprises me not that advisers have no clue about the 'courses' they are sending their clients to. Little seems to have changed since I was at A4e and later Ingues and certainly since I signed off around three years ago. And as Mr P rightly says, if they have no idea about these 'courses', how do they know what benefits a jobseeker will gain from them?

[dozeymare]

thanks so much lapsed workaholic - the letter is greatly appreciated,

 

all these holidays I have been stressed out - to the point of really losing my temper, which is so unlike me

 

and in answer to the last post - they seem to try and have yu jumping through the same hoops over and pver again - so they are seen to be trying to do something

[dozeymare]

Well i handed in my mandatory reconsideration letter over a week ago,

I did not attend the new course, which was suppose to be 3 days 10 - 3,

 

after i had handed the letter in , the advisor gave me duplicate man, with the information about the course. This was not included in the 1st man.

After quickly scanning through this course I noticed it was similar to the confidence building course - I had already done ( 12 weeks @ 1.5 hours a week)

Dunno why they think making bridges out of paper would help me :x:x

I refused to attend this new course on the grounds that they did not send the man out correctly so not enforcable and also that I had already done a similar course.

they just think putting you anywhere will sort there job :x:x

[dozeymare]

The manger rang me last week to say she had seen the letter, and would get back to me - she hasn't as of yet - she also never sent details of the jobs open day i asked her about - which is suppose to be friday

[Lapsed Workaholic]

If you were given a new MAN last week you will need a new reconsideration letter.

Can you clarify the following, it would help in preparing another letter?

What date was the course you were notified of in the first MAN supposed to start?

What date is the course you were notified of last week supposed to start?

Was it, in fact, the same course?

Not sure what you mean by duplicate MAN?

Were both MANs dated? What was the issuing date on each MAN?

Was the new MAN that you got last week given to you at the same meeting that you handed in your letter asking for reconsideration of the former MAN?

Were any discussions held about the suitability of this new MAN in your circumstances?

More details of what the course involves might be helpful along with details of the previous course that you have already been on, highlight similarities, appropriateness of contents in your circumstances.

In any event you can't be sanctioned unless you fail to attend. You can't fail to attend before the attendance date.

[dozeymare]

It was the same man - different date - after I handed her the letter she also gave me the details of the course.

Seems similar to the confidence course I attended earlier in the year, except that was for 1.5 hours once a week. it's actually ran by the same group aswell,

 

How m any paper bridges do they expect yu to make on the worK programme :mad2:

[dozeymare]

The man was dated 7th - and I was suppose to start on the 11th,

The course is about team building, meeting new people, managing money - health and safety, etc.

All this was covered on the confidence course I attended ( apart from managing money) as I told her I'm a grown up I don't need help with my money

[Lapsed Workaholic]

Sorry for asking again for clarification:

 

 

You say "The MAN was dated 7th - and I was suppose to start on the 11th". Do you mean January?

 

 

The draft letter I posted here on 27 Dec was written long before that MAN was even sent.

 

 

Did you hand in a copy of the letter I drafted here in response to the MAN dated 7th?

 

 

Did you get another MAN since, what was the date on it and what was the course starting date on it?

[dozeymare]

the new MAN was dated 7th jan - it was a copy of the same MAN dated in december with a new date on - this 1 came with the info.

 

She handed the MAN over as I handed the letter to her.

 

the MAN was for the same course starting 11th jan

 

I did not attend course, I got a phone call from manager saying she had letter and wouod get back to me - to date I have heard nowt