Staff at York's Jobcentres are gearing up to help lone parents in the city get back to work.

Lone Parent Advisers Cathy Bainbridge and Graeme Rudd at York's Stonebow Jobcentre

They have spent the last seven weeks in training so as to offer single parents taking up the chance of free childcare under the Government's New Deal the advice and support they need.

Under the New Deal For Lone Parents scheme launched at the end of October last year, the Government has pledged to foot the bill for childcare for those trying to get back to work.

Graeme Rudd, a lone parent adviser at York's Stonebow Jobcentre, stressed that the scheme was "entirely voluntary".

But he said: "We are providing a service for lone parents on Income Support who want to get back into work or training.

"The government has realised the big problem is childcare and that is now effectively paid for."

He said lone parents searching for work could expect to receive £60 a week for their childcare for the first child and £100 a week if they had two children or more.

He said: "We are here to provide a personal service, giving advice on council tax as well as employment-related issues, and have access to contacts at the Benefits Agency and Child Support Agency."

The new officers are intended to act as a one-stop-shop for lone parents who might in the past have found it intimidating and impractical to negotiate their way around town with small children in tow, visiting all the different agencies they needed to.

Home visits or meetings on neutral ground such as community centres are also possible.

Mr Rudd said: "There is no obligation if it doesn't work out but research has shown that 90 per cent of lone parents want to get back into employment."

The officers work with laptop computers and have all the information available to calculate the exact financial advantages of taking up a particular job, accounting for variations to state benefits, the cost of child care, travel, and living expenses.

For more information contact Graeme Rudd or Cathy Bainbridge at the Stonebow Jobcentre on 01904 882110. Other Lone Parent advisers in York are Alison Rawcliffe at the Clifford Street Jobcentre on 01904 882000 and Colin Rose at the Malton Jobcentre on 01653 685848. Alternatively people can phone a freephone number 0800 7834063 to make an appointment with one of the advisors.

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