job centre 'travel to interview' scheme stopped!

ploder · 7 April 2011 at 11:25AM

I'm not on benefits (don't qualify) but I can sympathize with the cost of travel, especially if you're not in a job to fund it. Last week I attended the first stage in the recruitment process after being shortlisted and could barely afford the £6.80 (day return ticket) it would cost to get there and back. I could have sworn the same ticket was £4.80 only a few years ago. Too many of these trips would leave me with literally nothing and unfortunately I never made it to the next stage of recruitment anyway. I don't have a licence but even if I did I would be hit by congestion charge. Too far to cycle and it would have needed 3 changes of bus which I decided not to risk. It's a depressing situation because you're weighing up your chances of getting the job with how much money you need to live on each week/month.

jay_1978 · 7 April 2011 at 11:39AM

It's not only the travel scheme that has stopped, All the other things they used to do to help you back into work as also stopped IE cscs courses, FLT courses, Help with buying suits for interviews as also stopped, They are so low on funding at the moment.

lbr102 · 7 April 2011 at 12:17PM

I recently used this scheme so am shocked that it has stopped.

It was difficult enough asking for the money and being looked at suspiciously. I was asked if I'd tried for jobs closer to home in a sort of 'God this persons awkward having to travel so far away to an interview'. After all the nonsense last year about people needing to be willing to travel to work I was a bit annoyed to be honest.

I had had three interviews in the same location previously in the week period before - all of which I'd funded myself. I had to get lifts with my partner on his way to business meetings the day before and dropped off with family closer to the interview to stay with and things like that just to make it affordable.

The fourth interview there was just nothing I could do as I couldn't have got there had I not been given help.

It's paid off as I've now got a job and I can afford to get there now that I'm working. The first month will be tricky but luckily as there are lots of bank holidays it makes it a tiny bit easier and there are things like season tickets which make it cheaper to get to work five days than to travel to peak time interviews three days!

lbr102 · 7 April 2011 at 12:21PM

Oh yes and to add, the three interviews had cost me £100 the previous week I think. The one the job centre paid for cost £122 as I couldn't be flexible.

The interview the job centre paid for was on the Thursday. I had had my previous interview on the Monday prior to that and couldn't get a lift home with my partner until after a trade show on the Tuesday meaning I couldn't go into the job centre until the Wednesday to get the money so it meant that I didn't have the flexibility to get cheaper tickets. Of course I would have been happy to have spoken to them on the telephone or have gone to a job centre near to my relatives home to request the money but that wasn't an option! If it had been an option I could have travelled from that area instead and then travelled onwards to home after the interview. This would have meant that the train fare total would have been about £30!

It seems madness that there is no flexibility like that!

Braintree · 7 April 2011 at 12:37PM

jay_1978 wrote: »

It's not only the travel scheme that has stopped, All the other things they used to do to help you back into work as also stopped IE cscs courses, FLT courses, Help with buying suits for interviews as also stopped, They are so low on funding at the moment.

I shouldn't be that surprised; when watching the Jobcentre sanctions video on the Guardian website the whistle blower at the end said "There is no funding once the new financial year starts" I didn't realise he literally meant NOTHING.

Ihatecameron · 7 April 2011 at 12:51PM

I remember when I was out of work, it was like pulling teeth to get money for travel to interviews, and then they used to accuse me of not doing enough to find work, they also made a big deal out of looking further afield, you won't find jobs on your own doorstep and the rules state you must be prepared to travel. I wonder what excuses they will use now when there is no help, and the few quid they give you to live on is spent on food.

-BA- · 7 April 2011 at 1:02PM

nellytheelephant wrote: »

At my work the Job Centre have just refused to pay for train tickets for someoen to attend an induction - they can't afford to come without it so we've had to withdraw their job offer - !!!!!!?!

Well I am sorry but in this scenario I would be saying, "!!!!!!" to your employer not JCP. Firstly and induction is not an interview so JIS wouldn't apply anyway and it is pretty dismal of an employer to make the first option to withdraw a job offer rather than offer a sub on wages or to just pay the damn travel expenses for the induction (especially if it is an unpaid one, as some are).

persa · 7 April 2011 at 1:18PM

Well, I spoke to my JC and was told I could still go to my interview - the adviser seemed very unfussed about the announcement. Not sure if it's just because I arranged the interview a while ago or not.

dugdale_2 · 7 April 2011 at 3:53PM

TIS has not been stopped, in fact I've authorised two applications today. It's being reviewed as are many other things due to the introduction of the work programme. Instead of there being one large pot of money to be shared out nationally each region will have more control of it's own budget. If one particular region decides that it doesn't want to allow TIS anymore that might release extra funds for more training courses, or more into the ADF pot. There isn't a bottomless pot of money available and it is only correct that more thought is given to how tax payers money is spent.

richpoortyke · 7 April 2011 at 9:09PM

Not really surprised by this news. Each time i speak to the JC about this i get a different answer. The latest one was that it had to be over an hour in public transport travel before i would be considered. Even then they didnt seem sure whether it would be allowed.
I need the option as there is no work in my town, and the nearest city is 30 miles away (around £13 on the train).
How can the Government expect us to pay for these travel costs (20% of the income i get for one interview in my case) but still tell us to look for work that is 1-1.5 hours away from our homes?

job centre 'travel to interview' scheme stopped!

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