1. DWP & OXFAM LIVELIHOODS TRAINING PROJECT
Antonina Mendola & Vicky Goodban
8th November 2017 BL

2. OXFAM – WHAT WE DO
Works with numerous partners across Wales, UK and internationally
UK Programme:
Women United
Wales: Sanctuary in Wales, Building Livelihoods & Strengthening Communities, DWP & Oxfam Livelihoods Project, Skills for Life
Sustainable Livelihoods Approach
Policy, advocacy and campaigning
Media and communications- challenging myths
Quick intro to Oxfam - Some of our international and global campaigns Even it up, Syria crisis, work with others on Living wage, fair tax corporates. Oxfam GB works in England, Scotland and Wales.

3. POVERTY IN WALES
1 in 4 people in Wales live in poverty -700,000 people
1 in 3 children live in poverty
1 in 4 workers in Wales are paid less than the Living Wage
Only 27% of children in receipt of Free School Meals achieve A-C grades at GCSE in English, Welsh, Maths compared with 61% for non-Free School Meals pupils
85,656 people were given 3 days emergency food in 2015/16
50% of working age population lack basic numeracy skills and 25% basic literacy skills
1 in 4 people have a mental health problem
46% of social housing tenants are digitally excluded
This picture hasn’t changed much in 10 years
Poverty stats not changed much in Wales in the last 10 years (JRF)
700,000 people = enough to fill the Millennium Stadium over 9 times over or twice the population of Cardiff our capital city.
Or twice the population of Cardiff.
Antonina’s notes – do
Adults with basic skills issues equates to poor communication, understanding, our systems becoming more digitalised – call centres – you have to be able to communicate .
Most at risk of low pay are women, young people and part time workers
Women are at a higher risk of poverty than men and more likely to live in poverty than men.
Latest figures show 7.3% of the UK population have been in persistent poverty: 4 million people – lower compared to EU
We have a higher rate in the whole EU of people falling into poverty for less than a year “millions of people are at risk” of being in and out of the poverty trap

4. A SUSTAINABLE LIVELIHOOD
‘The capabilities, assets and activities required for a means of living’ ‘A livelihood is sustainable when it can cope with and recover from stresses and shocks, and maintain its assets and capabilities, both now and in the future…” Adapted from Chambers and Conway, 1992
Slide 15
Definition – mention what a shock is

5. KEY CONCEPTS OF THE SLA
Everyone has varying degrees of assets in their life. When combined they create a livelihood. However, for those with fewer assets a sustainable livelihood is not possible, leaving people vulnerable to internal and external “shocks”.
People with the least number of assets are more likely to be those who are most likely to experience social exclusion and discrimination.
Often support services focus only upon a single aspect of someone’s life, such as their income or earnings. Other factors that also impact, such as family and caring responsibilities, are not considered.
The Sustainable Livelihood Approach uses positive language to uncover what would enable people to develop their potential and capacity within their existing assets and livelihood strategies
Example of a shock: A shock could be losing your job or having dealing with a relationship breakdown and at the other end of the spectrum - If a household has few financial assets and also limited social assets (friends or family living locally), then a “shock”, such as a cooker breaking down, may be very difficult to deal with – no-one they can call upon. This can be the tipping point for what can spiral a person into the poverty trap and have a domino effect onto many other aspects of the person’s livelihood.

6. OXFAM’S USE OF THE SLA
Initially mostly focused on rural development in the southern hemisphere. External evaluations showed signs of success.
Oxfam-funded Ruti Irrigation Project in Zimbabwe: effectiveness review showed increased household income, assets and ability to meet household needs.
But could SLA be applied to more urban and Northern contexts?
Initially developed in the Global South and more recently adapted for use in the UK. Thornaby-on-Tees
A method of understanding the lives of people experiencing poverty and disadvantage
A participatory approach that is based on the belief that people experiencing poverty have the abilities and assets that can be used to help them manage and improve their lives
Person-centred and empowers people by helping them create their own solutions.

7. SLA IN WALES
Building Livelihoods and Strengthening Communities in Wales project, funded by the Big Lottery and Oxfam, delivered by nine local partner organisations in communities across Wales between 2012 and 2016.
Used the Sustainable Livelihoods Approach (SLA)
The project changed the lives of over 1,100 people across Wales
1-to-1 support (intensive or non) to take stock of their lives and access the help they need to make positive changes for themselves
Demonstrated an impressive return-on-investment of £4.43 for every £1 spent.
No single main source or repository of what Oxfam means by SLA:
International Development: The 1999 DiFD paper provides a clear introduction to the SLA as used in Oxfam GB international work. This is also summarised in the short paper, Sustainable Livelihoods Framework. Neither contain application to the UK context.
Practical Tool Kits: The 2008 Sustainable Livelihoods Handbook provides an entry-level introduction to SLA concepts and tools, but is very light on conceptual background. This toolkit was updated in 2013 for the Welsh Livelihoods project.
Conceptual Outlines: An introduction to a generic Oxfam understanding of SLA is provided in the 2011 paper, Community Assets First. Similarly, Emergency Use Only (Section 1.2 and Appendix A) provide an overview of the key tenants of SLA.
Project-Specific: explanations of SLA are sometimes found in project work (for a good example, see the Welsh Livelihood’s project planning),
The SLA moves away from a one-size-fits-all model to a tailored, individualised assets-based, holistic approach to tackling poverty.
The assets based approach was used by our partners and tailored to work with mainly individuals within communities of interest and with geographical communities who presented with complex issues and were in poverty: from refugees to young people and over 50’s etc
Throughout this project, participants consistently reported lower levels of satisfaction with Jobcentre Plus (JCP) compared to other services.
Factors cited included
perceived unfair use of sanctions
lack of understanding of the realities of living in poverty which has led to a perception of unfair decision making.

8. SLA PRINCIPLES Be people-centred Be holistic Be dynamic
Build on strengths
Promote micro-macro links
Encourage broad partnerships
Aim for sustainability
SLA has seven guiding principles. They do not prescribe solutions or dictate methods. Instead, they are flexible and adaptable to diverse local conditions.
The guiding principles are:
Be people-centred. SLA begins by analysing people's livelihoods and how they change over time. The people themselves actively participate throughout the project cycle.
Be holistic. SLA acknowledges that people adopt many strategies to secure their livelihoods, and that many actors are involved; for example the private sector, ministries, community-based organizations and international organizations.
Be dynamic. SLA seeks to understand the dynamic nature of livelihoods and what influences them.
Build on strengths. SLA builds on people's perceived strengths and opportunities rather than focusing on their problems and needs. It supports existing livelihood strategies.
Promote micro-macro links. SLA examines the influence of policies and institutions on livelihood options and highlights the need for policies to be informed by insights from the local level and by the priorities of the poor.
Encourage broad partnerships. SLA counts on broad partnerships drawing on both the public and private sectors.
Aim for sustainability. Sustainability is important if poverty reduction is to be lasting.

9. THE TRAINING PROGRAMME APRIL 2016 – SEPTEMBER 2017

10. LIVELIHOODS TRAINING PROJECT: LEARNING OUTCOMES
Identify the context of poverty in Wales and how it relates to finding and staying in work
Recognise the factors that create poverty and social exclusion and the impact on people’s lives
Examine personal and organisational values, attitudes and behaviours which impact on service delivery
Examine stigma and myths attached to poverty
Consider the benefits of a holistic approach to supporting clients and the use of tools such as SLA and their practical use
Exploration and interaction
We developed training programme which would provide people with information about the welsh poverty scene, be interactive, exploratory and allow people space to discuss their issues in their context. We also introduced the idea of DWP staff using an assets based approach when working with their clients/customers.

11. LIVELIHOODS TRAINING PROJECT: BENEFITS FOR DWP
Increases awareness of vulnerable/disadvantaged groups
Helps to develop robust relationships with external partners/providers who support vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.
Supports Jobcentre Operating Model
Supports Quality Agenda-Claimant Commitments
Supports Work & Health agenda
Supports Universal Credit Full Service (UCFS)
Benefits for Oxfam and its poverty agenda = this is a key organisation /public body and main player who could really affect how it works with people in poverty.

12. LOOKING INSIDE PEOPLE’S LIVELIHOODS
HUMAN health both physical and mental, skills, education
SOCIAL
family, friends, relationships, voluntary work,
community associations,
faith groups,
FINANCIAL
income, wages, informal economy, access to credit/financial services, benefits, pensions, maintenance
Livelihood AM
A learning piece intro
What sla is – what it is not
PUBLIC
Statutory services, public transport, community buildings
PHYSICAL
Housing, access to vehicle, basic white goods, computer, local environment
PEOPLE HAVE STRATEGIES TO GET BY – THEY MAKE RATIONAL CHOICES AND WEIGH THE RISKS

13. WHAT IS THE SLA TOOLKIT?
This Toolkit, and the approach it utilises, provides a systematic, proven approach to analysing and understanding poverty from a community and individual citizen centred perspective.
It helps people understand and address their own poverty from a holistic, whole life perspective, rather than simply addressing in isolation the surface problem – i.e. jobless, appears to suffer from depression, or has engaged in offending behaviour.
12 x Tools AM
The 12 tools in the toolkit encompass: 7 to Engage and assist in creating a comprehensive picture of a person’s lifestyle, livelihood and situation; 3 to Investigate power, influence and position in society; 2 to ascertain solutions to problems
Many services still deliver a deficit model diagnosing and prioritising the area/s which needs addressing in a persons livelihood or in a community at large. This changes that model and stops being paternalistic; it allows people to be autonomous in making their own decisions around their priorities in their lives. It is empowering because it works at the person’s pace.

14. LIVELIHOODS TRAINING PROJECT: TRAINING CONTENT
MODULE 1 (1 day)
Participants: Open to all JCP staff, managers, Benefits Offices
Content
Understanding poverty in Wales
Case studies and Livelihoods Workers’ experience
Co-training with BLSCW project partners
Introducing & trialling use of the SLA Tools in the DWP context
MODULE 2 (1 day & follow up)
Participants: DWP Leads (self appointed, from all parts of service)
Face-to-face sessions
Monthly remote learning telekit sessions
This project has been flexible enough and been able to respond to needs of the learners. Module 2 was developed quite quickly based on demand and
scheduled leads sessions within each district for those wishing to improve/explore their working practises using an assets based approach to working with customers. Some staff who have the confidence have started using tools in groupwork training sessions eg over 50’s bridgend and others use 1 or more tools individually when coaching customers. We even have instances of people using them in supervision to coach their own staff!

15. 608 individuals 158 attendees WHAT WE ACHIEVED
EMBEDDING POVERTY AWARENESS:
608 individuals
SLA LEADS TRAINING:
158 attendees
(10 x full day + 10 x remote learning sessions)
These were interactive exploratory and people used real case studies, definitions of poverty and explored their own values attitudes and practise in an interactive way
Nearly 40% of DWP workforce including Senior Leadership teams
Note on why it worked:
Trust, iterative, me -able to be flexible/respond to need,
SLT’s and District Leads train the trainer and taking on good practise
Examples of how used: Over 50’s club in Bridgend, Health and Work, Assets Pentagon at Claimant Commitment

16. THANK YOU CONTACT Victoria Goodban vgoodban@oxfam.org.uk 0300 200 1269
Close Ben Lloyd 17 17 17

17. Huw Thomas Partnership Manager for Wales DWP
DWP in Wales: Context
Project Background/ Partnership approach
Pilot events and outcomes
Project roll out
Final Outcomes and benefits for DWP
Next steps.

18. LIVELIHOODS TRAINING PROJECT: BENEFITS FOR DWP
Increases awareness of vulnerable/disadvantaged groups
Helps to develop robust relationships with external partners/providers who support vulnerable and disadvantaged groups.
Supports Jobcentre Operating Model
Supports Quality Agenda-Claimant Commitments
Supports Work & Health agenda
Supports Universal Credit Full Service (UCFS)