Claimant Segmentation Trial Standards and Guidelines
This document contains the instructions, standards and guidelines that must be followed
during the 3‐month implementation of the Claimant Segmentation Trial. Please adhere to
these as closely as possible. If you think your office may have a problem with complying with
any of these instructions, please contact your single point of contact (SPOC) as soon as
possible. Your SPOC will be able to raise this with the project team if necessary.
Trial overview
The Claimant Segmentation Trial is being rolled out to 27 Jobcentre Plus (JCP) offices across
the country. It aims to test what the impact of weekly jobsearch reviews (WJRs), also known
as weekly signing, is on claimant success in finding work, and most importantly identify
which groups of claimants respond best to WJRs.
The trial will use an approach known as 'Randomised Controlled Trials' (RCTs) to rigorously
test the impact of WJRs. This means that we will need to randomly assign claimants to
either WJRs or standard fortnightly jobsearch reviews (FJRs), also known as fortnightly
signing, and observe the outcomes.
The data collection and random assignment will be performed by the Claimant
Segmentation Survey tool, which you will have received with this guidance. The simple,
quick, and easy‐to‐use tool will enable us to collect key information about claimants that
will help to analyse in detail how and why WJRs work.
The rest of this document covers how and when to use the Claimant Segmentation Survey
tool and standards that must be followed subsequently to ensure this trial generates the
best results possible. Please remember that these measures are temporary impositions that
will ultimately help in making everyone more effective at helping claimants back into work.
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Claimant Segmentation Survey Tool
You should have already received the Claimant Segmentation Survey Tool. This is an excel‐
based tool that has been design to be as quick and un‐obstructive to normal work as
possible.
When to use
The tool should be administered at the end of the meeting where the claimant would
usually be told how often they need to sign in your office. Work coaches or assistant work
coaches should allow up to five minutes to run through the tool from beginning to end.
If a claimant has made a claim and been through the tool once, and then subsequently
comes off benefits (for any reason) and then makes a second claim, including a rapid‐
reclaim, they must still go through the tool again. As long as their NI number is correctly
entered, we will be able to track their repeat entries in the data.
How to use
The tool is very simple and easy to use.
Setting up the tool for use
Work coaches or assistant work coaches should save the tool
to their desktop, and ensure that macros are enabled for it. If
you do not know how to do this, contact your IT champion,
SPOC, or FLISM. The first time the file is opened the user will
be prompted to enter an email address. Please enter your own
work email address. Once entered the first time and saved, you
will not need to do this again.
Before using the tool
We have provided a copy of the questions which you may
print, give to claimants before their interview, and ask them to
complete in advance. This is not compulsory, but will ensure
that running through the tool during the interview should be as
quick and smooth as possible. If they do not or cannot fill it in,
then simply enter answers directly into the tool during the
interview.
Starting the tool
To use the tool, simply open the file from your desktop. It will
open and the survey page should automatically appear. The
welcome page asks you to continue if the claimant is eligible to
take part in the study. Eligibility criteria are discussed below. If
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a new JSA claimant is not eligible, the relevant LMS marker
must be set. Instructions on setting LMS markers are provided
at the end of this document.
NINO and consent
To begin a new survey, click 'Begin new survey'. You must then
enter the claimant's National Insurance number. Please ensure
that this is correctly entered as this will be the only means we
have to track claimant's data. If the number entered is not a
valid NINO you will be prompted to correct it.
You must then ask for the claimant's consent for us to collect
information about them. This is necessary because we are
collecting additional information beyond what is necessary for
the claims process for the purposes of research. Please read
out the passage to the claimant and ask if they are happy with
this. Please click either the 'Agree' or 'Disagree' buttons.
If they disagree they will still be part of the trial using the data
we already have available and the questions about your views
on the claimant, and the NINO must still be entered.
If the claimant has any questions about this trial, see the FAQs
below, which should address most of their concerns. If the
claimant requires further information still, please seek advice
from your SPOC or manager
.
Claimant questions
If the claimant agrees to answer questions, you will be taken to
the first of two claimant question pages. Make sure the
claimant can see the questions on the screen, and then work
through these with the claimant, reading out each question
and asking the claimant to indicate answer(s) they would
choose. Enter their answers as you go. The claimant should
have received a paper version of the questions in advance,
meaning they should have their answers ready prepared.
Please note that for some questions only one answer choice is
possible (circular buttons) whereas for others you may select
more than one answer (square buttons).
If the claimant does not understand any question, help them to
understand the meaning, paraphrasing if necessary. The option
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'prefer not to answer' is available for every question; the
claimant must not be pressured to respond to a question if
they do not want to (but no question can be left blank).
The claimant questions are spread over two pages – this is
simply to save you from scrolling down the page. Use the 'Next'
button to navigate to the next page.
Questions for you
Once you have completed all the claimant questions, or if the
claimant did not agree to answer the questions, a window will
open asking you (the work coach / assistant work coach) to
ensure that you can answer the next section in confidence. At
this point please adjust the screen so that the claimant cannot
see what is displayed. If necessary explain that you now need
to fill in additional information.
Once the screen is appropriately adjusted, click 'Ok' and you
will be taken to a separate question page. These are questions
for you to answer about the claimant; please answer them as
accurately and honestly as possible.
The final question asks you to indicate which category best
describes the claimant. Please refer to the Pen Picture
categorisations for more detail on each of these descriptions.
These are included at the end of this document.
Once you have completed all the questions, click the 'Next'
button. At this point the data is saved and submitted to our
central server via your email. Therefore you should not close
and re‐start the tool for the same claimant; the data has
already been submitted and re‐running the tool with the same
claimant will create a data error.
You may be warned by your email system that a program is
trying to send an email on your behalf. If so, click 'Allow'. The
email is sent from your email address, but is immediately
deleted. The data is also encrypted before sending, so no‐one
else will be able to access the responses.
Assignment to WJR / FJR
Once the data email has successfully been sent, a window will
appear informing you of the claimant’s assignment to either
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weekly or fortnightly job‐search review meetings. Remember
that this will be assigned randomly;
for this trial none of the
answers given in the survey will affect the assignment.
At this point you should make a note of the claimant's
assignment on LMS by updating the relevant marker, and
continue as normal with scheduling their next visit. You may
close the tool; there is no need to save.
Information for claimants
You should not discuss with the claimant the reasoning behind
the assignment. This is because, once assigned, the
worksearch regime is part of the claimant’s requirements and
should not be taken either more or less seriously by the
claimant because they believe it is part of a trial rather than
business as usual. However it is necessary to be honest if a
claimant asks for further information. If necessary inform the
claimant that this is part of the new system which assigns 50%
of claimants to weekly signings. Further questions could be
directed to a manager or the Single Point of Contact in your
office.
Running the trial: Standardisation
Once the Claimant Segmentation Survey tool has been administered, it is important that the
delivery of either WJRs or FJRs is as standardised as possible. This will allow us to compare
the difference between those receiving each intervention as accurately as possible.
The period of data collection using the Claimant Segmentation Survey tool is approximately
3 months, and each claimant is in the trial for 13 weeks thereafter; however, we will
continue to track the claimants for 52 weeks. Thus it is important that those claimants who
come through the Claimant Segmentation Survey continue to receive the same standardised
treatment even after the data collection phase of the trial closes.
The following is a list of guidelines that should be adhered to as closely as possible for the
duration of the trial. If you feel that meeting any of these standards will be problematic at
your JCP, please discuss this with your SPOC who will be able to raise issues with the project
team.
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1. No claimant – whether assigned to WJRs or FJRs – should have any additional
interaction with advisers or staff at the JCP apart from their scheduled signing
meetings or separate business as usual.
2. No member of staff – whether advisers, work coaches or management – may change
a claimant's assignment (to either WJRs / FJRs) after the Claimant Segmentation
Survey tool has been completed before the 13 weeks assignment period for that
claimant is completed. The only exception is when a claimant becomes ineligible for
the trial – see below. In this case the LMS marker must be changed.
3. After the 13 weeks is completed, the participant is no longer part of the trial.
It is
important that from then on both groups follow standard procedure in your office
– they should not be treated differently depending on whether they have been
doing WJRs or FJRs.
4. A claimant's assignment to either WJRs / FJRs must continue until the 13 weeks is up
or the claimant's claim is closed – they must not be switched to FJRs / WJRs signings
for any reason.
5. We will agree with your office the format to be used for off‐cycle meetings for WJR.
These should be the same for all claimants in the WJR group. Normally, for those
assigned to WJRs,
a. off‐cycle meetings should be kept to under 10 minutes
b. during off‐cycle meetings there should be no special content covered beyond
what would normally be covered by a fortnightly job‐search review meeting
c. for the
off‐cycle meeting, for those in the weekly group, the intervention
must be standardised for everyone in your office who is part of the trial
d. all meetings should be conducted in the same manner – i.e. face to face at
the JCP
e. the notice period given for all meetings should be standard – i.e. one week in
advance
f. for
on‐cycle signings, use current procedures. Any discretion, for example in
the length of signing, may be continued but
it must be applied equally to
those on weekly and fortnightly signing. That doesn't mean everyone must
be treated the same, but everyone on weekly must be treated the same as if
they were on fortnightly signing. So if you have a policy of phoning up those
who you think are least motiviated, you must phone them whether or not
they are signing weekly (it is not necessary to phone the same number of
people in each group).
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Consistency in how you engage with claimants, who are part of this trial, is critical to the
chance of developing our learning and helping to improve the way we deliver our business.
Claimant Eligibility Criteria
There are circumstances under which claimants do not follow fortnightly or weekly
Jobsearch reviews, but are either exempt from signing entirely, sign by post, or require daily
signing.
These cases should be exempted from the trial, and the LMS marker set accordingly.
All other cases should be part of the trial. It is vital for the success of the trial that people
are not exempted from the trial on the basis of their suitability for weekly signing – this is
exactly the thing that is to be analysed and if some groups are exempted the results may be
misleading.
Setting an LMS marker
All claimants in scope of this trial will need an LMS marker set appropriately. To do this;
Open claimants record on LMS
Select “Hotspots” on menu
Drop down list appears and "Pilots" is in the list
Select Pilots
The View Pilots list appears
Locate the "JSA Segmentation" option to include them in the trial
After the trial period
Once the claimant has completed 13 weeks, the claimant's signing regime may be reviewed.
When it is reviewed it is vital that the regime is applied irrespective of whether they have
been signing weekly or fortnightly. This is necessary as we are tracking claimants for a full
year.
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It is not necessary to review the signing immediately; if it suits your office better then the
claimants can continue on their assigned regime until it is convenient to review. However
they must not be 'switched' to the opposite group. When changing signing regimes, you
should only take into account the characteristics of the claimant and
not the signing regime
they were assigned to under the trial.
FAQs
Q: Why do we need a trial?
A: Running trials is important in order to properly and scientifically understand what works
best, and for whom. Without a trial we are relying on the judgements and experiences of
individuals which are likely to be correct in those instances, but cannot necessarily be
applied throughout the country. This trial will provide us with accurate information that will
allow us to make policy that is relevant and useful for all JCPs nationwide.
Q: What's wrong with relying on the judgement of work coaches and assistant work
coaches?
A: There's nothing wrong with their judgement, which is why the tool seeks to capture their
experience and judgement. This trial will help us understand whether we can develop a
statistical tool that could be used to help staff in making their decisions. Staff have the
experience which will always be key in making the right decisions for claimants. While staff
will make the right decision most of the time, the goal is to make the right decision always.
Furthermore, the introduction of UC is likely to change the way we operate. Caseloads will
be increasing, meaning we need to find new ways to support staff in their work, and much
more interaction with claimants will be done online, meaning staff won't necessarily come
face‐to‐face with claimants until later in the process. We want to investigate whether a tool
could be useful in these circumstances.
Q: What if I think the claimant is lying?
A: There is very little that we can do to force claimants to tell the truth in their answers.
Firstly, you should always make it very clear that their answers will in no way affect their
situation; the data will be used at an aggregate level and will be completely anonymised. If
they have previously given you a different answer to the same question asked in the survey,
you can ask them to confirm which the correct response is. However, we do not expect you
to probe or push claimants; just record what the claimant answers.
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Q: What if we decide after the interview that the claimant shouldn't be in the trial?
A: Once a claimant has been through the Claimant Segmentation Survey, their data is
automatically part of the trial. However, if there are exceptional reasons why the claimant
needs to be exempted from their assigned signing regime (e.g. moved to a daily signing
regime), this will be possible so long as this is noted in LMS through applying the
appropriate LMS marker.
Q: How do I explain to claimants why they have been assigned to WJRs/FJRs?
A: You should not discuss with the claimant the reasoning behind the assignment. This is
because, once assigned, the worksearch regime is part of the claimant’s requirements and
should not be taken either more or less seriously by the claimant because they believe it is
part of a trial rather than business as usual. However it is necessary to be honest if a
claimant asks for further information. If necessary inform the claimant that this is part of
the new system which assigns 50% of claimants to weekly signings. Further questions can
be directed to the Single Point of Contact in your office.
Q: Why does the assignment have to be random?
A: Random assignment allows us to be as certain as possible that there is no other factor
affecting the outcomes we are interested in.
Imagine that I want to test a new fertiliser in my garden. I sprinkle all the pot plants on the
west side of my garden with the new fertiliser, and all the pot plants on the east side with
the old fertiliser. After one month I notice that the pot plants on the west side have grown
much more than those on the east side. However, I cannot be certain that this growth is
(only) due to the fertiliser; what if they also received more sunlight, or were more sheltered
from wind, or even benefitted from the fertiliser my neighbour uses? To conclusively
evaluate the impact of the fertiliser, I should randomly give half the pot plants the new
fertiliser, and half the old one. If after one month I still notice that those that received the
new fertiliser have grown more, then I can be much more certain that this is due only to the
fertiliser and nothing else. Applied to a much larger scale, this approach allows us to
calculate with statistical certainty whether an intervention causes an outcome.
Q: Are my answers to the questions about the claimant going to be linked back to me?
A: No. As with the claimant's answers, all responses will be used in aggregate. The individual
answers you give will not be linked to you personally.
Q: Do I have to angle my screen away for the third page? What happens if the claimant
asks to see the questions?
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A: The reason we request that you turn the screen is so that you may answer these
questions about the claimant confidentially. We want your answers to be as honest as
possible, and if the claimant can see the screen you may feel obliged to be more favourable
towards them. By angling the screen, you will be able to answer the few questions quickly
and honestly.
If the claimant asks to see the questions, we advise that you inform them that you also need
to input information into the data collection tool. Do not discuss the questions as this may
change the way the claimant reacts to their weekly / fortnightly assignment. Please do not
share details with the claimant unless there is a real danger that your relationship with them
will be damaged, and you are comfortable doing so.
Q: Will this tool be replacing work coaches and assistant work coaches?
A: No. This tool is only being used for this trial in order to collect data and ensure that
assignment of claimants to weekly / fortnightly signings is mathematically random.
Q: Our judgement will always be better than a tool, why are you trying to develop a tool?
A: Your judgement, which is based on experience and day‐to‐day interaction is indeed
invaluable. However, we are trying to do two things: firstly, with the move to UC, more and
more claimants will be engaging with the system online. In these cases we will no longer be
able to rely on your judgement all the time, and may need a robust tool that can be
effective in your place. Secondly, this trial will provide us with invaluable evidence on which
type of claimants will be helped by WJRs, and which won't. The important point here is that
we will have a national‐level view, which will then be shared with work coaches and
assistant work coaches to make sure that the decisions they have to make day‐to‐day are
given all the input possible.
Q: What happens after the 13 weeks?
A: Once the claimant has been on either weekly of fortnightly signing for 13 weeks, they
should then move on to whatever signing regime they would normally be placed on. Given
that the target is to have 50% of claimants on weekly signings, it is likely that for the
majority of claimants they will simply stay on weekly / fortnightly signings. However, after a
period of 13 weeks we will no longer specify how the claimants should be treated. Please
note, however, that we are still interested in how the claimants fare over 52 weeks, and so
will continue monitoring them even after the 13 weeks have passed.
It is not necessary to review the signing immediately; if it suits your office better then the
claimants can continue on their assigned regime until it is convenient to review. However
they must not be 'switched' to the opposite group. When changing signing regimes, you
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should only take into account the characteristics of the claimant and
not the signing regime
they were assigned to under the trial.
Q: What if the claimant refuses to take part?
A: The claimant may refuse to answer the survey questions; however, they cannot opt to
not take part in the trial. The trial is looking at the impact of receiving WJRs / FJRs, and as
such they must adhere to the signing regime they are assigned so long as their claim is
active. If a claimant is worried about being part of a trial, explain that their experience of
claiming JSA will not differ, except in the frequency of the signings which is nationwide
policy.
Q: What if the claimant comes off benefits and then subsequently re‐applies?
A: All new claims must go through the survey. We will be able to track the claimant via their
NINO, and so it does not matter if they go through the survey multiple times.
Q: What happens if someone moves to another benefit?
A: In our records this will show as the claimant flowing off JSA, but we will be able to track if
they moved onto a different benefit. In this way, we will be able to determine if they moved
off JSA because they had found employment, or for other reasons.
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Pen Pictures – Detailed Descriptions
A. Willing but nervous job‐seekers
• Are nervous about whether they can find work, might feel there aren't many jobs
available, and that there isn't much help / support for them
• Are otherwise keen to work, and think work has real benefits
• Are usually actively looking for work
• Are generally willing to leave benefits to work
• Are likely to apply for jobs quickly
• Often have qualifications
B. Eager job‐seekers
• Have often made a commitment to find work, and are not nervous about moving
into work
• Are willing to risk doing jobs which are not ideal for them, and make compromises to
get work
• Generally don't enjoy being out of work
• Respect those in work and believe it’s important not to rely on benefits
• Are likely to apply for jobs very quickly
C. Ambivalent claimants with few barriers
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• May have personal circumstances which means they see work as less of a priority
(e.g. health/childcare issues)
• Not nervous, but little commitment to finding work/increasing hours
• Can cope with change;
• Are otherwise capable of working and job‐seeking activity and don't have significant
barriers;
• May believe that it's important to earn one's own money, and that there aren't
enough jobs available.
D. Other job‐seekers;
• Don't easily fit into any of the above groups;
• May have significant barriers to working or undertaking job‐search activity.
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