Introduction · Web viewWith this process, the data will still be collected using an excel workbook, however this will now be hosted online using SharePoint. Each local authority

Common Advice Performance Management Reporting Framework (CAPMRF)

Indicator Guide v6

Contents

Introduction2Scope and aim4Future Developments5Consultation6Data returns submitted by each Council7Indicators included within the framework8Supporting information9Appendix:10Definition of money and welfare rights advice10Overarching key outcomes for money and welfare rights advice10CAPMRF indicators and definitions11

Introduction

The Common Advice Performance Management Reporting Framework (CAPMRF) seeks to capture key performance data for money and welfare rights advice services funded by local authorities on both an in-house and commissioned basis. By collecting this information, it is intended to achieve a consistent approach to reporting and measuring the performance of these services. The framework is co-ordinated by the Improvement Service (IS) but relies on the support and commitment of councils.

This is the sixth iteration of the Indicator Guide, and the third in which the framework has been known as the ‘Common Advice Performance Management Reporting Framework (CAPMRF)’. The name change resulted from the inclusion of indicators relating to welfare rights advice and was formerly known as the ‘Money Advice Performance Management Framework (MAPMF)’.

The CAPMRF sets out the measures used to demonstrate the nature and extent of money and welfare rights advice activities. These measures also form the basis for assessing performance. This Guide provides a definition and, where appropriate, simple guidance concerning how the data for each indicator should be recorded and reported. The framework has been revised following workshops, consultations and discussions with local authorities and other strategic partners.

Considerable support and commitment has been demonstrated by local authorities throughout the various iterations of the Framework. This has resulted in marked annual improvements in the consistency and accuracy of reporting.

Scope and aim

The aim of the CAPMRF is to support local authorities to measure and report on the contribution they make to money and welfare rights advice services in Scotland. Ultimately, the focus of the framework is on the identification of the benefits the services deliver for their users. In the current context of financial constraint, the framework can play a key role in assisting local authorities to assess and evidence the contribution their investment makes at both local and national levels. Ownership of the framework rests with local authorities, and the role of the IS is to facilitate and enable its use.

The IS recognise the importance of co-ordinating the CAPMRF in line with the reporting requirements of other national funders of money and welfare rights advice, as well as key stakeholders, to ensure the widest possible consensus in relation to its key indicators. By adopting this approach, it is hoped to encourage consistency and establish common reporting requirements from funders. In the long run, this should reduce the overall data collection workload for local authorities.

It is essential to note, from the outset, that there are considerable variations as to how money and welfare rights advice services are delivered by local authorities. It is important to account for local needs, geography, and differing priorities. Consequentially, direct comparisons between one area and another are not always possible or sensible, due to the different contexts in which the services operate.

Future Developments

This is the sixth version of the Indicator Guide for the performance framework. It will continue to be reviewed on an annual basis to ensure that it reflects continuous improvement, and that the indicators remain robust and relevant. A balance has to be struck between stability and certainty in relation to data collection, and the need to reflect changes in policy and practice.

Changes to Indicators

Following discussions at workshops in December 2019 it was agreed that a different approach would be taken towards changes to reporting requirements. It was highlighted that local authorities and external organisations need advance warning of any changes to the framework, so that they can ensure these indicators are being collected in time for reporting. As a result, any changes that require additional data to be recorded will be highlighted in this guide, however local authorities will not be asked to report on these new indicators in the CAPMRF template until May 2021. This should allow services to implement these changes over the year 2020/2021 and ensure that a full year of recording has taken place before the measure is reported on. There have been some reporting changes that will be reported on in this year’s template, however these are minor changes to existing indicators that should not ask for data not already collected by services. In the appended indicator list, changes that are to be reported on in this year’s 2019/2020 template have been highlighted in yellow, whilst changes that are to be recorded over the 2020/2021 period and reported on in next year’s 2020/2021 template have been highlighted in green. The changes are as follows:

Changes to be reported in this year’s 2019/2020 template, May 2020:

· In some services indicators cannot be broken down into sub-categories but the total figure may be available. For indicators where this is commonly the case, alternative aggregated categories have been added so that these figures can be included (and demand better captured). These are not intended to replace the breakdown categories and should only be completed by services who cannot provide the breakdown of data. These include:

· Age – Alternative category 60+ has been included. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for 60-64, 65-70 and 71+

· Household Composition – Alternative category Single Parent Household has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Small single parent’, ‘Large single parent’ and ‘Young single parent’.

· Household Composition – Alternative category Two Parent Family Household has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Family household’ and ‘Large family household’.

· Income – Alternative category £10,000 or less has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘£6,000 or less’ and ‘£6,001 - £10,000’.

· Economic Status – Alternative category Student has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘At school’ and ‘In further/higher education’.

· Economic Status – Alternative category Permanently Sick or Disabled / Unable to Work Because of Short-Term Illness of Injury has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Permanently sick or disabled’ and ‘Unable to work because of short-term illness or injury’.

· Housing Status – Alternative category Temporary accommodation / Homeless has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Temporary accommodation’ and ‘Homeless’.

· Number of debt clients & amount owed – Alternative category Total has been added. This should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown of debt clients and amount owed by each debt category.

· Number of debt clients and amount owed – The category ‘Payday loan / high-cost credit arrears’ has been renamed as High-Cost Credit (Including Payday Loans and Guarantor Loans) to reflect that payday loans are becoming less common and so the focus of this category should be broader.

· Number of debt clients and amount owed – The category ‘Unsecured personal loan (in arrears)’ has been renamed to Personal loan as it was highlighted that not all loans are in arrears. This category should include all personal loans which people seek debt advice for, including those in arrears and those not.

· Contributory benefits should include, Bereavement Benefits, contribution-based ESA, contribution-based JSA, Incapacity benefit, Maternity Allowance and State Pension. Bereavement benefits, Maternity Allowance and State Pension had previously been included as separate categories, however this led to confusion about where to include these figures and so have been removed.

Changes to be recorded during the year 2020/2021 and reported on in the 2020/2021 Template, May 2021:

· The household composition categories will be further refined to better align with those set out in the Child Poverty (Scotland) 2017 Act. The groups are by their nature overlapping; therefore, it is not possible to have mutually exclusive categories. The categories included are proposed as the closest fit for recording these priority groups. The new categories to be added include:

· Single Parent Household with Young Children – this contains one adult and a dependent child under 1

· Young Family Household – this contains two adults (non-pensioner, at least one under 25) and one or more dependent children

· Family Household with Young Children – this contains two adults (non-pensioner) and a dependent child under 1

· Number of debt clients and amount owed – The category Deficit Income will be added. This category will be added as it was suggested that this would give a more accurate reflection of the number of people seeking money advice due to inadequate income. This should include clients who are on a fixed income and cannot met essential living costs.

· Number of debt clients and amount owed – The rent arrears category will be replaced with three categories; Local Authority Rent Arrears, Private Rent Arrears and Housing Association Rent Arrears. As rent arrears have become increasingly common it was suggested that this category should be split into three categories to better understand the breakdown of the type of rent arrears people have.

· Mandatory Reconsiderations – The outcome category Mandatory Reconsiderations – Number Awaiting Outcome will be added to record the number of mandatory reconsiderations where the outcome is not yet known. This category allows the outcome of mandatory reconsiderations to be more accurately represented as the current won/lost categories underestimate the demand and the lengthy nature of this support.

· Mandatory Reconsiderations – The outcome category Mandatory Reconsiderations – Number Withdrawn will be added to record the number of mandatory reconsiderations where the client has withdrawn from support before an outcome is reached. This will be added to better capture the volume of work undertaken by services which may not be highlighted through the current won/lost categories alone.

· Appeals – The outcome category Appeals – Number Awaiting Outcome will be added to record the number of appeals where the outcome is not yet known. This category allows the outcome of appeals to be more accurately represented as the current won/lost categories underestimate the demand and the lengthy nature of this support.

· Appeals – The outcome category Appeals – Number Withdrawn will be added to record the number of appeals where the client has withdrawn from support before an outcome is reached. This will be added to better capture the volume of work undertaken by services which may not be highlighted through the current won/lost categories alone.

Ensuring Consistency

In this year’s template, services will be asked to confirm that the data included reflects only activity funded by the local authority. This follows discussions at stakeholder workshops in December 2019. There was a concern that within some areas the data provided, included all activity from these advice services, including activity funded from other funding streams. Given the focus of the framework is on local authority funded activity it was agreed that there was a need to ensure that this is the case going forward.

A sheet called ‘Adjustments’ has been included in this year’s template to help better understand which approach local authorities would like to take to ensure that data accurately reflects only local authority funded activity. The template first asks the user to confirm whether the data includes local authority funded activity only. If this is the case, the user is asked to provide details on how this is achieved, e.g. through apportioning data or only recording activity from a local authority funded post. If users can’t confirm that the data includes local authority funded activity only, they are asked how they would like to proceed. It is recommended that the data is adjusted to reflect the proportion of funding received from the local authority. If the local authority is happy for their data to be adjusted, they can select whether to do this themselves or if they would prefer for the IS to do this on their behalf. If the local authority does not want their data to be adjusted, then a caveat will be included in the local authority report to highlight that the data may include activity not funded by the local authority.

If adjustments are made, these are to be made across all indicators. Adjustments will be based on the proportion of total funding which comes from the local authority. For example, if a service receives 50% of its total funding from the local authority, then each indicator would be adjusted by 50% to reflect the proportion of activity supported by investment from the local authority:

Total Clients = 1,000

Adjust by 50%

Report Total Clients = 500

Clients aged 25-30 = 60

Adjust by 50%

Report Clients aged 25-30 = 30

Financial gain from awards = £5,000

Adjust by 50%

Report Financial gain from awards = £2,500

If local authorities choose to make these adjustments themselves, they must confirm on the ‘Adjustments’ sheet once this has been done. If local authorities would like the IS to make these adjustments, then they must provide a figure for the proportion of total funding which comes from the local authority. This figure will be used by the IS to adjust the data.

The national report will highlight how this process has worked and it will be reviewed going forward to ensure consistency can be introduced over time.

Data Collection Process

During the 2018/19 data collection process six local authorities trialled an online reporting system using SharePoint. Following the successful trial this process will be rolled out across all 32 local authorities. Guidance on this process has been developed and shared with local authority colleagues. Local authorities have also been consulted on how they would like to use this process with an option of having external colleagues submit data themselves for their service. This process should help streamline the data collection process and reduce the room for error in the data.

Several improvements have also been made to the data collection template to help ensure consistency of reporting. These improvements include:

· The inclusion of pop-up guidance notes for indicators that commonly cause confusion

· The inclusion of ‘Total’ figures below category breakdowns, to help facilitate data validation whilst data is entered into the template

· Within the master data template for each local authority, the data entered this year is compared with the previous year’s data and large changes will be highlighted, prompting users to check the data and provide background information to help explain any large changes.

As the CAPMRF is being developed through an iterative process, it relies on ongoing commitment and support from all local authorities. There is an acceptance and acknowledgement that the ultimate goal should be consistent reporting on all the agreed indicators. The IS will continue to work closely with key stakeholders to achieve this. Significant progress has already been made to date.

Consultation

Following their involvement in its initial development, local authorities, their partners, and other stakeholders are regularly invited to contribute to the revision and improvement of the CAPMRF. Each iteration of the framework is subject to in-depth discussion on identified areas via workshops, to which all local authorities and key stakeholders are invited. Whilst frequent opportunities are offered for feedback, the workshops provide the main platform via which any difficulties regarding the current framework can be expressed and possible solutions explored. Additional feedback is then sought prior to the implementation of any changes. All comments and contributions are considered and, where consensus is not possible, the majority view prevails.

The draft annual overview report is circulated among local authorities and key stakeholders prior to publication, providing a further opportunity for comment. All comments and contributions are considered and, where consensus is not possible, the majority view prevails.

In addition to a national overview report, individual councils are provided with area reports which set out the position at a local level. Councils are given the opportunity to review and highlight key information in their individual area reports. In many instances case studies, which provide additional information are also included

Data returns submitted by each Council

In 2018/19 six local authorities trialled an online data collection process using SharePoint. Following this successful trail, it was agreed at workshops in December 2019 that this process would be extended to all local authorities. With this process, the data will still be collected using an excel workbook, however this will now be hosted online using SharePoint. Each local authority will be sent an email with access to their template and will complete this online, eliminating the need for them to complete the template and then return it via email. This reduces the chances of error that comes with having multiple versions of files and helps to incorporate changes more quickly.

Guidance on this process has been developed and shared with local authority colleagues. Local authorities have also been consulted on how they would like to use this process with the option of submitting one response or allowing external colleagues to submit data themselves for their service within multiple templates.

For local authorities who have chosen to submit one response, one online template will be created and the local authority will be asked to complete this detailing the performance information of all money and welfare rights advice services that are funded and/or provided by the local authority.

For local authorities who have chosen to submit multiple responses a separate template will be created for each of the services they fund. The local authority has specified an individual who is responsible for completing each of these templates, in some cases this will be external colleagues. Each contact will complete the template for the service they have responsibility for, detailing the performance information for this service that is funded and/or provided by the local authority. These templates will then be combined to create overall figures for the local authority.

Ongoing support will be available to colleagues throughout the data collection period, to ensure a smooth transition to SharePoint.

The period covered by the current return is 1st April 2019 – 31st March 2020. Data returns should be completed no later than 1st June 2020. Individual links to the online templates, and further guidance will be issued to colleagues before April.

Any queries relating to the data returns can be discussed further with:

Cara Connachan

[email protected]

01506 283796

Indicators included within the framework

There are five types of indicator included within the CAPMRF:

· Context

· Input

· Activity

· Output

· Outcome

While not measuring performance directly, the context indicators are required to collect essential information on the composition of services and types of clients within each local authority area. In simple terms, local authorities rely on inputs (e.g. staff and budgets) to deliver money and welfare rights advice services. These inputs allow a range of activities to take place (e.g. meetings with clients). In turn, these activities will deliver a range of outputs (e.g. the debt strategy agreed with a client, benefit checks). These outputs may result in a range of outcomes for individuals, communities and the economy (e.g. client financial gain, improved health and wellbeing).

The Appendix of this Indicator Guide defines and summarises each indicator in the CAPMRF.

Supporting information

In addition to the data provided by local authorities, the IS will consult national datasets and other sources of information. The inclusion of this additional data, where appropriate, will strengthen the report analysis and contextualise the findings.

Appendix:

Definition of money and welfare rights advice

Money and welfare rights advice, in the context of this framework, refers to free-to-client advice. Most free-to-client money advice providers describe the service they offer as money or debt advice with some elements of budgeting support, income maximisation, financial inclusion and financial education. Most free-to-client welfare rights advice providers offer assistance with questions regarding entitlement to benefits, benefit checks, help completing application forms, and advice on challenging unfair decisions.

It is recognised that service delivery models vary across local authorities in Scotland and therefore the interpretation of what constitutes money and welfare rights advice varies. This framework aims to record the performance of all the main services provided and funded by local authorities under the umbrella of money and welfare rights advice.

Overarching key outcomes for money and welfare rights advice

Effectiveness and client outcomes:

The client’s situation has improved as a direct or indirect result of the money and/or welfare rights advice service’s intervention.

Operational and service delivery outcomes:

All citizens requiring it can access good quality money and/or welfare rights advice via the channel that best meets their needs and preferences. Those who require face-to-face advice have access to it.

Efficiency outcomes:

The money and/or welfare rights advice service delivers good value for the resources invested in it.

Strategic outcomes:

The money and/or welfare rights advice service contributes to relevant local and national strategic outcomes.

Community and economic outcomes:

The money and/or welfare rights advice service contributes to outcomes which benefit the community and local economy.

1

CAPMRF indicators and definitions

Indicator list

The indicators are categorised following a logic chain model of INPUT (I), ACTIVITY (A), OUTPUT (OP) and OUTCOME (OC) indicators. We have also included some CONTEXT (C) indicators.

Context indicators

The context indicators are used to understand the make-up of money and welfare rights advice services and the people who access them within each local authority area. These indicators do not provide performance information, but will help to explain the complexities surrounding money and welfare rights advice service delivery across local authorities in Scotland.

Ref

Indicator

Definition

Notes

C1

Money and welfare rights advice services and case management system(s) in the local authority area

Local authorities should provide the total number and individual names of the services they fund, broken down into the following categories:

Where a local authority funds a consortium containing several providers, each provider should be counted individually.

Outreach locations should not be counted as separate services.

Delivered In-house

Delivered Externally

No. delivering money advice only

No. delivering money advice only

No. delivering welfare rights advice only

No. delivering welfare rights advice only

No. delivering both money and welfare rights advice

No. delivering both money and welfare rights advice

They should also list the case management systems used by each of these services (e.g. AdvicePro, PG Debt).

C2

Total Number of clients per demographic measure

Local authorities are required to provide the total number of clients dealt with per financial year, broken down into the following categories:

The figures provided for this measure should include the total clients supported during the financial year, including those whose support has continued from the previous financial year. Below each recording category, a data check box has been provided which calculates the total number listed within the demographic category. If data is complete, this number should be the same under each demographic category and should match with the total number of clients provided in the sheet A1. If there are figures missing for a demographic category, e.g. one service cannot provide data for household income, the missing clients should be included under not recorded or this should be noted in the additional information box.

A number of ‘Alternative Category’ options have been included this year. These categories are aggregated versions of some of the sub-categories which a number of services have indicated could not be captured. These aggregated categories have been introduced to enable those services who cannot provide a breakdown of the sub-categories to include a total figure, ensuring that the overall demand is captured. This category should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown.

Options for ‘Not recorded’ and ‘Prefer not to say’ are included. ‘Not recorded’ refers to data which is not collected, whilst ‘Prefer not to say’ means that the individual does not wish to disclose information.

If recording in the ‘Other’ category please provide descriptions, and numbers for each in the additional information box. For example, 11 students and 15 not seeking work.

Sex

Male

Female

Not Recorded

Prefer not to answer

Year of Birth

1937 and earlier

List of all years in between

2001 and later

Not Recorded

Services should provide either year of birth or clients by age-bandings but not both.

Reporting by year of birth was introduced as it was suggested that this offered the easiest and most consistent way of recording age. Age bandings should be used by those who cannot provide data year of birth

Optional: Age

0-15

16-24

25-34

35-44

45-59

60-64

65-70

71+

Alternative Category: 60+

Not Recorded

Prefer not to say

The alterative category 60+ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for 60-64, 65-70 and 71+

Ethnicity

· White

· Mixed or Multiple Ethnic Groups

· Asian, Asian Scottish or Asian British

· African

· Caribbean or Black

· Other Ethnic Group

· Not recorded

· Prefer not to say

Household Composition

A single adult household contains one adult (non-pensioner) and no children

An adult is anyone over the age of 16

A single pensioner household contains one pensioner and no children

The definition of a ‘pensioner’ is a person for whom the majority of their income is derived from pension payments

A small single parent household contains one adult and one or two dependent children

A large single parent household contains one adult and three or more dependent children

A young single parent household contains one adult (under 25) and one or more dependent children

A single parent household with young children contains one adult and a dependent child under 1

The category ‘Single parent household with young children’ will be added to better align with those set out in the Child Poverty (Scotland) 2017 Act

Alternative Category – Single Parent Household

The alterative category ‘Single Parent Household’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Small single parent’, ‘Large single parent’ and ‘Young single parent’

A family household contains two adults (non-pensioner) and one or two dependent children

A large family household contains two adults (non-pensioner) and three or more dependent children

A young family household contains two adults (non-pensioner, at least one under 25) and one or more dependent children

The category ‘Young family household’ will be added to better align with those set out in the Child Poverty (Scotland) 2017 Act

A family household with young children contains two adults (non-pensioner) and a dependent child under 1

The category ‘Family household with young children’ will be added to better align with those set out in the Child Poverty (Scotland) 2017 Act

Alternative Category – Two Parent Family Household

The alterative category ‘Two Parent Family Household’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Family household’ and ‘Large Family household’

An adult family household contains two or more adults (non-pensioner) and no dependent children

An adult is anyone over the age of 16

An older adult family household contains at least one pensioner

Not Recorded

Prefer not to answer

Disability or long-term condition

Yes

No

Not Disclosed

Household Income:

Net annual household income (after taxation and other deductions)

Note: income may be from a variety of sources-employment, welfare benefits, etc.

· £6,000 or less

· £6,001-£10,000

· Alterative Category - £10,000 or less

· £10,001-£15,000

· £15,001-£20,000

· £20,001-£25,000

· £25,001-£30,000

· £30,001-£40,000

· Over £40,000

· Not Recorded

· Prefer not to answer

The alterative category ‘£10,000 or less’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘£6,000 or less’ and ‘£6,001 - £10,000’

Economic Status

· Self-employed

· Employed full-time

· Employed part-time

· Looking after the home or family

· Permanently retired from work

· Unemployed and seeking work

· At school

· In further/higher education

· Alternative Category - Student

· Government work or training scheme

· Permanently sick or disabled

· Unable to work because of short-term illness or injury

· Alternative Category – Permanently sick or disabled / Unable to work because of short-term illness or injury

· Other

· Not recorded

· Prefer not to answer

The alterative category ‘Student’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘At school’ and ‘In further/higher education’

The alterative category ‘Permanently sick or disabled / Unable to work because of short-term illness or injury’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Permanently sick or disabled’ and ‘Unable to work because of short-term illness or injury’

Housing Status

· Owner occupied, which includes households who are buying their home with a mortgage or loan

· Tenant (Social Landlord), which includes tenants of local authorities and Housing Associations or Co-operatives

· Tenant (Private Landlord) which includes all types of tenancy for which a contractual arrangement between an individual and another individual/company exists

· Temporary accommodation, provided through the council in exercise of its statutory duties

· Homeless, an individual who lacks housing (without regard to whether the individual is a member of a family) as defined in the Housing (Scotland) Act 1987

· Alternative Category: Temporary accommodation / Homeless

· Other tenure, which includes any other category of tenure such as living rent free

· Not Recorded

· Prefer not to say

The alterative category ‘Temporary accommodation / Homeless’ should only be completed by services who cannot provide a breakdown for ‘Temporary accommodation’ and ‘Homeless’

C3

Number of debt clients and amount owed by these clients

Local authorities are required to provide the total number of clients and amount of debt, associated with each category listed. The figures provided for this measure should relate to all clients when they make initial contact with the service (before receiving debt advice). It is accepted that, in the course of receiving advice, further debts may be identified:

The figures provided for this measure should include the debts of all clients who made initial contact in the current year. This should include clients whose cases have been closed within the financial year.

Four new debt categories have been included this year; Deficit Income, Local Authority Rent Arrears, Private Rent Arrears and Housing Association Rent Arrears. Services are asked to start recording on these measures during the 2020-21 financial year, however these will not be collected in the template until next years data collection, May 2021. This will ensure that a full year of recording has taken place before the measure is reported on.

· Bank and Building Society overdrafts

· Benefit overpayment

· Catalogue debts

· Council Tax arrears

· Credit, store and charge card debts

· Deficit Income

This category has been added as it was suggested that this would give a more accurate reflection of the number of people seeking money advice due to inadequate income. This should include clients who are on a fixed income and cannot met essential living costs.

· High-cost credit (including payday loans and guarantor loans)

This has been changed from ‘Payday loan/high-cost credit arrears’ to reflect that payday loans are becoming less common and so the focus of this category should be broader.

· Mortgage arrears

· Personal loan

This has been changed from ‘Unsecured personal loan (in arrears)’ as it was highlighted that not all loans are in arrears. This category should include all personal loans which people seek debt advice for, including those in arrears and those not.

· Rent arrears

· Local Authority Rent Arrears

As Rent Arrears have become increasingly common it was suggested that this category should be split into three categories to better understand the breakdown of the type of rent arrears people have.

· Private Rent Arrears

· Housing Association Rent Arrears

· Rent-to-Own debts

· Utility arrears

· Other (please specify)

· Total

This has been added to allow services to include the total number of debt clients and amount owed if the breakdown for each debt category is not possible.

Input Indicators

The input indicators are used to measure the level of investment, via the funding and staff numbers attributed, that local authorities make into money and welfare rights advice services.

Ref

Indicator

Definition

Notes

I1

Number of FTE Staff

Local authorities are required to provide the total number of full-time equivalent (FTE) staff involved in the delivery of money and welfare rights advice per financial year, including administrative duties, for:

Figures should be reported dependent on how much staff time is spent providing money and welfare rights advice e.g. if money and welfare rights advice makes up 80% of staff business then 1 FTE should be recorded as 0.8 FTE. Part-time and temporary staff members should also be recorded proportionately.

Figures for staff employed in external services should only include those staff funded by the local authority. If only part of the post is funded by the local authority then this should be reported proportionately, e.g. if local authority funding makes up 80% of the funding for a staff member then 1 FTE should be recorded as 0.8 FTE.

Staff employed within Internal local authority services

Staff employed within External services

Paid FTE

Paid FTE

Volunteer FTE

Volunteer FTE

I2

Funding

Local authorities are required to provide the total annual sum of funding they provide in their area for money and welfare rights advice services, for:

Figures should include overhead costs (gross salary costs, i.e. including employer’s costs)

If funding for money and welfare rights advice is included as part of the total funding for the provision of general advice, this should be apportioned to give an estimation e.g. if the provision of money and welfare rights advice takes up 70% of service activity, then 70% of total funding should be recorded.

Internal local authority services

Externally delivered services

They are also required to provide the annual sums of funding that money and welfare rights advice services in the local authority area receive from other sources, including:

This is used to evidence that local authority investment in core services enables funding to be attracted for other services.

However, if the local authority receives external funding for a specific project, that is not part of the core service, e.g. the local authority does not fund any staff for this project, then staff and activity for these projects should not be included.

Big Lottery Fund

European Social Fund

Scottish Government

Scottish Legal Aid Board

Figures for funding received by local authorities will be provided directly by the funder. Please only provide figures for funding received by externally delivered services.

Other (please specify)

Activity indicators

The activity indicators give an overview of the volume of clients and cases each money and/or welfare rights advice service has dealt with over the financial year. It is recognised that these measures do not reflect the overall activity of a service, but do provide valuable insight.

Ref

Indicator

Definition

Notes

A1

Volume

Local authorities are asked to provide the total number for:

Total Contacts in relation to money or welfare rights advice, made to the service over the last financial year ending 31/03/2020

A money or welfare rights advice contact can be defined as an enquiry from a person seeking information on a money or welfare rights advice matter. The contact turns into a new client if the service must take some form of action (e.g. signposting, referral, casework), to support the person and/or resolve the issue.

For the total number of contacts, only include an individual once. If repeated contact is made by the same individual, do not count the additional contacts separately.

Total Clients supported by the service in the 12 months to 31/03/2020, including those whose support is ongoing from the previous financial year

The framework takes a client-focused, rather than case-based approach to the measurement of volume. As such, each client supported by the service should be counted only once, regardless of the number of different issues they present with, or the number of times they present.

The number of Total Clients should be higher than the number of New Clients, as Total Clients should include the total number of New Clients and the total number of existing clients, whose support is ongoing from the previous financial year.

Total New Clients supported by the service in the 12 months to 31/03/2020 i.e. a client who has not contacted the service previously and has accessed the service with a new enquiry

The framework takes a client-focused, rather than case-based approach to the measurement of volume. As such, each client supported by the service should be counted only once, regardless of the number of different issues they present with, or the number of times they present.

Contacts by Channel:

· Email

· Face-to-face

· Telephone

· Web

· Webchat


· Not Recorded

Only include the channel through which the individual first contacted the service. If repeated contact is made by the same individual, do not count the additional contacts separately.

Contact established with the service via the completion of online forms should be included under ‘Email’.

‘Web’ should be measured via the number of unique page views of the service’s website.

‘Not recorded’ refers to data which is not collected.

Number of benefit entitlement checks carried out

Referrals:

· Self-Referral

· Local Authority:

· Employability

· Housing

· Revenues

· Social Services


· Primary Health Care

· Third Sector


· Not Recorded

A ‘referral’ is where contact with the money and/or welfare rights advice service is initially established by another organisation on behalf of a client.

‘Not recorded’ refers to data which is not collected

First reason for initially contacting the service (should not include subsequent issues dealt with in the case)

· Assistance with making initial application for benefits

· Bank & Building Society overdrafts

· Benefits entitlement check

· Benefit overpayment

· Catalogue & Mail order debts

· Council Tax arrears

· Credit, store, and charge card debts

· Help with appealing a welfare benefit decision

· Issue relating to right to reside

· Mortgage arrears

· Payday loan/high-cost credit

· PPI

· Rent arrears

· Sanctioned

· Seeking to access other funds (i.e. grants)

· Unsecured personal loan (except payday loans)


· Not Recorded

Only include the initial reason given for contacting the service. If subsequent reason are given or identified do not count these reasons separately.

Number of open cases at the end of the financial year

· SNSIAP Type I Cases

· SNSIAP Type II Cases

· SNISAP Type III Cases

· Type I – Active Information, Sign-posting and Explanation

· Type II – Casework

· Type III – Advocacy, Representation, and Mediation at Tribunal or Court Action Level

Number of cases closed during the financial year

· SNSIAP Type I Cases

· SNSIAP Type II Cases

· SNISAP Type III Cases

· Type I – Active Information, Sign-posting and Explanation

· Type II – Casework

· Type III – Advocacy, Representation, and Mediation at Tribunal or Court Action Level

Output indicators

The output indicators show whether a result has been achieved with each client.

Ref

Indicator

Definition

Notes

OP1

Breakdown of debt strategy agreed with client

Local authorities are asked to provide the total number of clients who agreed each debt strategy in the financial year:

If a client has moved from one debt strategy to another, only report on the new strategy agreed. However, if they are using multiple strategies simultaneously, record all of them.

· Awaiting Sequestration

· Consolidation loan

· Debt Arrangement Scheme

· Debt Written Off

· Nil payments/offers

· Moratorium

· Mortgage to rent/shared equity

· Pro rata offers

· Repayment plan

· Sequestration

· Token payments

· Trust Deed

· Awaiting Outcome

· Did not agree a debt strategy


OP2

Number of claims submitted and awards made/maintained for each type of welfare/social security benefit

Local authorities are asked to provide the total number of claims submitted and the number of awards made/or continued to be paid after review for each type of welfare benefit in the financial year

The intention is to identify the number of claims for welfare/social security benefits that are supported by advice agencies and which subsequently result in the benefit being awarded (or continuing to be paid) for the main types of welfare benefits.

It is noted that the list of benefits will be subject to review, and that it includes social security benefits that are being devolved to Scotland.

Contributory benefits should include, Bereavement Benefits, contribution-based ESA, contribution-based JSA, Incapacity benefit, Maternity Allowance and State Pension.

Bereavement benefits, Maternity Allowance and State Pension had previously been included as separate categories, however this led to confusion about where to include these figures.

Benefit Type

Data Required

· Attendance Allowance

· Carers Allowance

· Child Benefit

· Child Tax Credit

· Cold Weather Payments & Winter Fuel Payments

· Contributory Benefits

· Disability Living Allowance

· Discretionary Housing Payments

· Funeral Expenses

· Industrial Injuries Disablement Benefit

· Pension Credit

· Personal Independence Payment

· Scottish Welfare Fund

· Sure Start Maternity Grant (replaced by the Best Start Grant

· Universal Credit


No. Claims Submitted

No. Awards Made/Maintained

OP3

Number of welfare/social security benefit claims that result in Mandatory Reconsiderations and Appeals, and their outcome

Local authorities are asked to provide the total number and outcome (won, lost, awaiting outcome, withdrawn) of benefit claims that result in Mandatory Reconsiderations or Appeals for the following benefits:

The intention is to identify the support provided by advice agencies to service users to challenge decisions about the award of welfare/social security benefits and the result



Benefit Type

Data Required


· Carers Allowance

· Child Benefit

· Child Tax Credit





· Funeral Expenses


· Pension Credit




· Universal Credit


No. Mandatory Reconsiderations

Mandatory Reconsiderations – No. Won

Mandatory Reconsiderations – No. Lost

Mandatory Reconsiderations – No. Awaiting Outcome

This will be added to record the number of MR’s where the outcome is not yet known. This category allows the outcome of MR’s to be more accurately represented.

Mandatory Reconsiderations – No. Withdrawn

This will be added to record the number of MR’s where the client has withdrawn before an outcome is reached. This will be added to better capture the volume of work undertaken by services which may not be highlighted through won and lost outcomes alone.

No. Appeals

Appeals – No. Won

Appeals – No. Lost

Appeals – No. Awaiting Outcome

This will be added to record the number of appeals where the outcome is not yet known. This category allows the outcome of appeals to be more accurately represented.

Appeals – No. Withdrawn

This will be added to record the number of appeals where the client has withdrawn before an outcome is reached. This will be added to better capture the volume of work undertaken by services which may not be highlighted through won and lost outcomes alone.

Outcome indicators

The outcome indicators describe the benefits of interacting with the money and/or welfare rights advice service for the client. In the short term, this benefit comes in the form of financial gain. However, there are also longer-term positive outcomes relating to financial inclusion and financial wellbeing.

Ref

Indicator

Definition

Notes

OC1

Verified and unverified financial gain

Financial gain is the total amount of income generated for clients per financial year as a result of the intervention of the money and/or welfare rights advice.

Financial gain is considered to be verified if the money and/or welfare rights advice service has independent evidence of the level of financial gain. This may be achieved via confirmation of receipt of the gain by the client, or by accessing a client’s records with another organisation. Other verification methods may also be possible.

Local authorities should provide the total sum of verified and unverified financial gain for the following:

Verified financial gain should be reported wherever possible.

This includes any income to which clients were entitled but would not have received without the intervention of the money and/or welfare rights advice service. This should include benefit/tax credits, refunds, debt written off, and grants accessed. In case of benefit/tax credits the award should be assumed for 12 months

If the gain results from a change in benefits, only submit any additional payments gained (e.g. if a client was in receipt of benefits totalling £55.10 a week, and this increased to £82.30 a week following intervention, the figure submitted would be the new payment minus the old payment, and then calculated for the year. In this instance

82.30 – 55.10 = 27.20

Multiplied by 52 = £1,414,40).

However, if the gain comes as the result of an appeal or mandatory reconsideration, include the full amount as this may have been lost without the service’s intervention.

The thinking behind it is that the role advice services play in ensuring service users continue to receive existing benefits should be reflected.

Do not include the following as financial gain:

· Referrals to foodbanks

· Charitable donations

· Successful Blue Badge applications



Breakdown of financial gain

Financial Gain Type

Broken down by each of the following benefits:


· Carers Allowance

· Child Benefit

· Child Tax Credit





· Funeral Expenses


· Pension Credit




· Universal Credit


Verified financial gain from awards

Broken down by each of the following benefits:


· Carers Allowance

· Child Benefit

· Child Tax Credit





· Funeral Expenses


· Pension Credit




· Universal Credit


Verified financial gain from mandatory reconsiderations/appeals

Total financial gain

Verified financial from any other welfare benefits not already covered in the above categories


Verified financial gain from money advice

This should include financial gain from increased resources i.e. money that is no longer payable, due to a debt being written off, DAS etc.

For debts written off, include the total value of the debt as financial gain, as this is the overall amount the client has been saved from paying.

For DAS the financial gain would be the reduction in outgoings, as the debt still exists, but the payments to satisfy it are reduced. The figure submitted would be the old payment minus the new payment. For example, if a client originally had monthly payments of £300 towards a debt and this reduced to £200 upon entering a DAS, the financial gain would be counted as £100, as the outgoing has reduced by £100. This is then calculated for the year. (In this instance

300 - 200 = 100

Multiplied by 12 = £1,200).


Unverified financial gain from welfare rights advice and money advice

OC2

Improved health and wellbeing

Percentage (or number, in relation to sample size) of service users self-reporting improved health and wellbeing as a direct result of getting advice/support from the service. This will be evidenced by the numbers recorded agreeing with each indicator statement which relates to the defined outcome.

Agree/Disagree – as a result of the advice/support given:

· I’ve been feeling more relaxed

· I’ve been feeling physically better

· I’ve been feeling better about myself

· I’ve been feeling more optimistic about the future

· I’ve been getting on better with others

The intention is to identify what has changed for the service user as a result of the advice/support that has been provided.

This will be done by asking set questions at the final advice session (or as near to it as possible) of all clients who have received type II or III advice on an annual basis.

If different measures are used by the service to record softer outcomes, please provide details and forward on this data

OC3

Improved capacity and ability to cope

Percentage (or number, in relation to sample size) of service users self-reporting improved capacity and ability to cope as a direct result of getting advice/support from the service. This will be evidence by the numbers recorded agreeing with each indicator statement which relates to the defined outcome.


· I am thinking more clearly

· I feel more in control of my life

· I am more able to make decisions

· I am more able to cope with day to day issues/problems

· I know when to seek support and where to get it



If different measures are used by the service to record softer outcomes, please provide details and forward on this data.

OC4

Increased financial stability and resilience

Percentage (or number, in relation to sample size) of service users self-reporting increased financial stability and resilience as a direct result of getting advice/support from the service. This will be evidenced by the numbers agreeing with each indicator statement which relates to the defined outcome.


· I recognise when I need help to sort out my money

· I am confident that I am getting all the benefits/help to which I am legally entitled

· I know how much money I have to spend

· I can better manage my money

· I would be better able to cope if I had an unexpected expense



If different measures are used by the service to record softer outcomes, please provide details and forward on this data.

1

Common

Advice Performance Management

Reporting

Framework

(C

APM

R

F)

Indicator Guide

v

6

Contents

Introduction

................................

................................

................................

................................

.

2

Scope and aim

................................

................................

................................

..............................

4

Future Developme

nts

................................

................................

................................

...................

5

Consultation

................................

................................

................................

................................

.

6

Data returns submitted by each Council

................................

................................

.........................

7

Indicators included within the framework

................................

................................

......................

8

Supporting information

................................

................................

................................

.................

9

Appendix:

................................

................................

................................

................................

...

10

Definition of money and welfare rights advice

................................

................................

..........

10

Overarching key outcomes for money and welfare rights advice

................................

................

10

CAPM

R

F indicators and definitions

................................

................................

..........................

11

1

Common Advice Performance Management Reporting Framework (CAPMRF)

Indicator Guide v6

Contents

Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 2

Scope and aim .............................................................................................................................. 4

Future Developments ................................................................................................................... 5

Consultation................................................................................................................................. 6

Data returns submitted by each Council......................................................................................... 7

Indicators included within the framework ...................................................................................... 8

Supporting information................................................................................................................. 9

Appendix:................................................................................................................................... 10

Definition of money and welfare rights advice .......................................................................... 10

Overarching key outcomes for money and welfare rights advice................................................ 10

CAPMRF indicators and definitions .......................................................................................... 11

Documents

Introduction · Web viewWith this process, the data will still be collected using an excel workbook, however this will now be hosted online using SharePoint. Each local authority