Gloucestershire CC has published an independent cost:Benefit analysis of its employment service.

The report was authored by Mark Kilsby, Julie Allan and Steve Beyer and looked at activity between 1 April 2013 and 30 November 2014. During this period they found that: •

• 91 beneficiaries with learning disabilities were supported in paid work over the period;
• 75 paid jobs were obtained over the period at a rate of 3.75 jobs per month;
• 11 people left their jobs over the period;
• 81 people with learning disabilities were in work at November 30th 2014.

Using their most conservative estimates, the researchers found that the service produced savings to the LA of £93,755 per year, returning £1.17 to the LA for every £1 it spends on the service. The low number of hours worked by the beneficiaries, combined with low wage levels, meant that savings at the Taxpayer level were modest, returning just 5p for every £1 spent. When the above savings are combined, this produces a headline figure of £1.23 for every £1 of expenditure.