Consent - Work & Health Programme

Mandatory referrals

Dear Department for Work and Pensions,

Please disclose a copy of all Designation Orders (including drafts) specific to the Work and Health Programme (WHP), together with information about the regulations and legislation which give the DWP and or it's WHP providers authority/power to request, share and obtain claimant/participant personal data from/with any Third Party who are not DWP Data Processors, such as an employer.

Can WHP participants explicitly decline or withdraw consent to allow the DWP and or it's WHP providers authority/power to request, share and obtain claimant/participant personal data from/with any Third Party who are not DWP Data Processors, such as an employer without risk of any financial penalties (sanctions)?

Reply
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/454807/response/1102039/attach/2/FOI%200023%20Reply.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

Signing provider forms and documents

I can confirm that it is not a mandatory requirement for a participant of a provider led mandatory programme to sign provider documents and forms.
29 March 2019

https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/569674/response/1366063/attach/2/F%20Zola%2015675%20Response.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

It will include this form:

DWP Provider Guidance ESF 2014 – 2020
Annex 4 - Informed Consent Statement

We work in [detail area your contract covers] with other organisations/partners to make sure that you receive all the services you need, when you need them. We want to focus on your particular needs to make sure that you get the right support.

Sharing your information will help us to support you better by:
• Helping the team give you the best advice about services in your local area
• Helping partners understand how they can improve services to you
• Allowing the team to contact you to provide help and support with any problems you may have or which may worry you (for example housing issues)
• Offering help and support to you by talking about your needs and how partners can help.
To help us do this, we want to share your personal information with each other. The exchange of information will take place, mainly during case conferences attended by representatives of some or all of the partners listed below.

The information we may share is about:
• Your name; date of birth; address, contact telephone number and contact email address
• Benefits received and support to find employment (for example which benefits you received, when these are due for review, support you are being provided to become more ready for work, conditions of your benefit receipt and when these may change)
• Transport issues (access to transport)
• Housing matters (for example tenancy type, rent arrears, fixed abode)
• Family matters (for example your current and former relationships, children and stepchildren, domestic routines and environment)
• Health information (for example any disabilities , illnesses, mental health problems, addictions/dependencies, support you receive)
• Relevant police and probation information (for example any conditions that you are under, previous convictions, police involvement at your address)
• Qualifications, work history and career aims
The other agencies we will work with are:

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………

We will only share your personal information for reasons mentioned above unless the law says we are required to share it for another reason, or as believe we must share the information to protect you or others. If in this process we obtain information that is relevant to benefits that you receive we may contact you further to ensure your entitlement is correct.

Your personal information will be stored securely and retained until the end of the provision or until you withdraw consent.

You may withdraw your consent by contacting [insert contact details]

Consent to share your personal information

I …………………………………………………………………………… (print full name)
Have had the above information explained to me, including any consequences of not sharing Health/Social Care information.

Signed ………………………………………………………….. Date ……………………

Provider signed ………………………………………………... Date ……………………

I am/am not happy for you to share any relevant Health/Social Care information and understand that I can change my mind at anytime


Signed ………………………………………………………….. Date ……………………

I am happy for you to share any relevant Health/Social Care information apart from (please tell us below) and understand that I can change my mind at anytime

…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/esf-2014-to-2020-provider-guidance

Employment outcomes

Consent is not required.  Data is collected automatically by DWP and notified to the W&HP.

Employed Outcome-Validation Process
15. Participants moving into employed work will be identified by DWP solely using HMRC PAYE on-line earnings data submitted by employers, subject to the notification by you of any Non-Qualifying Earnings and/orSCR provision for clerical claims at paragraph 56onwards. This data is submitted to HMRC each time an employee is paid by an employer and no evidence of this is required from Providers.
16.You will be paid based on the information contained within this HMRC PAYE on-line earnings data.

Further details can be found in Work and Health Programme Provider Guidance Chapter 13 –Funding Model.

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/827238/work-and-health-programme-provider-guidance-chapter-14.pdf

Edit:
Added link
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/568455/response/1359351/attach/2/FOI%2015035%20D%20Aitken.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

Voluntary participation (W&HP)

Volunteers will receive a letter confirming the referral is voluntary and they must provide consent to be referred to the W&HP.  

Voluntary participants can disengage and withdraw consent (a simple email or letter would suffice) at any time unless they become long term-unemployed 2yrs+ while participating in the programme!

If they asked me, I would just say thanks but no thanks.

Withdrawal of consent

Name
Address
Date of Birth
Contact details

I wish to disengage from the Work & Health Programme and withdraw my consent to [name of provider] using my personal data with immediate effect.



Signature __________________   Date ___________

If you wish, you can also request all the data the W&HP holds about you.

Besides HMRC and DWP data sharing, which is an embedded part of Universal Credit, what claimant personal data do work and health programme providers and sub-contractors seek to share, obtain and exchange with employers, DWP and third parties that requires claimant consent?

Often the best answer to the above question, is to obtain the standard letters, notices and forms used by providers for claimants. Examples are on https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/body/dwp - most of
which need DWP approval.

DWP and Providers are not interested in producing guidance or information that highlights claimant data protection and consent rights, so one should not rely solely on 'official' info to secure or understand your rights.

I understand Frank.

Pluss consent forms:
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/pluss_awarded_work_and_health_pr#incoming-1333788

Many thanks to Welfare Champion & Frank Zola for the clarification on these data protection issues.

Frank Zola:"DWP and Providers are not interested in producing guidance or information that highlights claimant data protection and consent rights"


This is clearly why we need to make it crystal to these planks at any provider offices or JC minus, not to take the mick when dealing with certain people as they are going to be corrected :whipping:Thanks guys for them template letters, and wondering if they are actually presented in that format from provider companies as they won't cut it with  the ico on giving or withdrawing consent.There is a particular layout a document has to present, like making it very clear and not surrounded by what maybe to some other confusing jargon.



Info below may help others also:
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/lawful-basis-for-processing/consent/

"Consent should be separate from other terms and conditions "

Consent means offering individuals real choice and control. Genuine consent should put individuals in charge, build trust and engagement, and enhance your reputation.

Check your consent practices and your existing consents. Refresh your consents if they don’t meet the GDPR standard.

Consent requires a positive opt-in. Don’t use pre-ticked boxes or any other method of default consent.

Explicit consent requires a very clear and specific statement of consent.

Keep your consent requests separate from other terms and conditions.

Be specific and ‘granular’ so that you get separate consent for separate things. Vague or blanket consent is not enough.
Be clear and concise.

Name any third party controllers who will rely on the consent.

Make it easy for people to withdraw consent and tell them how.

Keep evidence of consent – who, when, how, and what you told people.

Keep consent under review, and refresh it if anything changes.

Avoid making consent to processing a precondition of a service.

Public authorities and employers will need to take extra care to show that consent is freely given, and should avoid over-reliance on consent.


I feel this below is not right:
"Have had the above information explained to me, including any consequences of not sharing Health/Social Care information."

The only people who have a legal right to medical information etc will be the NHS and GP's; not some companies acting as if they think their experts on people's health after doing a few months on some course.Its shown time and again,their clearly not.

Term "disengage" is contained in the DWP WHP guidance
"Voluntary participants can disengage from the programme, although they should be encouraged [bullied] to return to the programme"
http://data.parliament.uk/DepositedPapers/Files/DEP2018-0759/Work_and_Health_Programme_v5.0.pdf
via https://www.google.com/search?=work+and+health+programme+voluntary+referral
DEP2018-0759 https://www.parliament.uk/business/publications/business-papers/commons/deposited-papers/?house=1&search_term=Department+for+Work+and+Pensions&itemId=119004

Suppose most claimants would say they no longer wish to volunteer for the WHP, rather then "disengage" from it. A template letter could also say 'I do not
wish to be encouraged to volunteer again for the WHP'

A template letter could also be an opportunity to request copies the personal data held by the WHP provider as well as considering asking for it to be erased once given to the claimant, though the provider and DWP may decline to erase and say they intend to retain/archive it, whilst stopping to 'use' or process it further.

Consent
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/lawful-basis-for-processing/consent/

Right to erasure
https://ico.org.uk/for-organisations/guide-to-data-protection/guide-to-the-general-data-protection-regulation-gdpr/individual-rights/right-to-erasure/

The Work and Health Programme helps you find and keep a job if you’re out of work.
It’s voluntary - unless you’ve been out of work and claiming unemployment benefits for 24 months.
https://www.gov.uk/work-health-programme

Welfare-Champion wrote:Mandatory referrals

Reply
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/454807/response/1102039/attach/2/FOI%200023%20Reply.pdf?cookie_passthrough=1

> Full PDF FOI history
25th January 2018
 https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/454807/response/1102039/attach/html/2/FOI%200023%20Reply.pdf.html

The pdf also links to requests for info the DWP did not disclose, see internal review reply
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/454807/response/1131827/attach/html/2/IR125%20Reply.pdf.html

Though the original reply and subsequent internal review response do not actually provide some critical info requested, it is focused on claimants being mandated to activity that would include sharing personal data [this info was not requested], through likes of a Job  Application. It completely ignores whether providers need claimant consent for them to share personal data with likes of employers [3rd party].

The PDF reply is also dated prior to the intro of the Data Protection Act 2018/GDPR (23 May 2018) coming into force.
http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukpga/2018/12/contents/enacted

Always recommend NOT linking direct to a PDF file on whatdotheyknow.com, as often the date of the info, full history of the FOI request, internal reviews and annotations are lost. FOI requests on WDTK provide links to HTML web page/plain text versions of PDF files, such as
https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/454807/response/1102039/attach/html/2/FOI%200023%20Reply.pdf.html (.pdf.html) which include a link to the full  FOI history at the top of the web page.

One example of Consent and the DWP is how the ESA50, UC50 (Work Capability questionnaire form) and ESA1 (claim form) do not comply with the Data Protection Act 2018/GDPR and the DWP has still not changed them despite promising to
do so.  The DWP did change the ESA50 to comply and on the first day of the new Tory Gov it was deleted from
www.gov.uk

Tories use first day back to attack the disabled http://www.defenddemocracy.press/tories-use-first-day-back-to-attack-the-disabled/ > https://mrfrankzola.wordpress.com/2019/12/17/data-consent-rights-removed/

Deleted  ESA50 December 16th 2019 version https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/625632/response/1498490/attach/3/CCS153%20CCS1019394820%20001%20ESA50%201219%20print.pdf
This deleted version did give explicit claimant opt-in consent  for the infamous ESA65B letter to go a GP or NOT https://www.z2k.org/scrap-the-letters/
All versions of ESA50 forms https://www.whatdotheyknow.com/request/data_protection_legislation_and#incoming-1498490
Current version (from 2018) https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/capability-for-work-questionnaire#history

The example above on the ESA50/UC50/ESA1 and ESA65B, shows what the DWP really thinks about Consent and its obligations under the GDPR/Data Protection Act 2018, which is nearly two years old, on the matter of Consent.

Thanks for the info Frank.  I have been following the 'scrap the letters campaign'.

It is disgraceful that DWP has reversed its decision.

I have tweaked the consent letter for W&HP volunteers above.

Consent considerations.

When you are requested (volunteers)/Mandated (LTU claimants) to undertake an activity, all you need to do is ask yourself the following questions:

Is the data requested necessary?
Is the mandate/request reasonable taking into account all of your circumstances?
Can you complete the the activity yourself without any assistance/handing over your personal data/info?

Frank Zola:""Voluntary participants can disengage from the programme, although they should be encouraged [bullied] to return to the programme""


That made me laugh but sadly...so very true.In line with all their other useless dribble of the 'WHP will help you remain in work longer. '