UK Inquiry Tracker

Jobcentres

Public Accounts Committee Closed Inquiry

Opened: 26 Mar 2025 Closed: 22 Sep 2025 Parliament page

The Government plans to reform the system of employment support, including by merging Jobcentre Plus with the National Careers Service. There are over 600 Jobcentres across Great Britain, forming a network which is the Department for Work and Pension’s main mechanism for supporting Universal Credit (UC) claimants into work and … Read more The Government plans to reform the system of employment support, including by merging Jobcentre Plus with the National Careers Service. There are over 600 Jobcentres across Great Britain, forming a network which is the Department for Work and Pension’s main mechanism for supporting Universal Credit (UC) claimants into work and increase their income. In October 2024, there were 7.2m people claiming UC. Of these people, 2.5m were earning less than the threshold whereby their UC claim would be subject to conditions, which could include a specified number of hours of looking for work, or regular meetings with a work coach. In a 2021 report , the PAC found that the quality of claimants’ experience and whether they received the right support would depend on the DWP’s ability to integrate an additional 13,500 new work coaches into its organisation and manage their performance effectively. The Work and Pensions Committee launched its own inquiry into Jobcentre reform in 2025 , examining the Jobcentre’s role and customers’ experience of it, as well as how they can work better with external organisations and careers advisers to get people into work. The National Audit Office’s 2025 report on supporting people to work through Jobcentres aimed to establish a baseline for the current system. Based on the NAO report, the PAC will hear from senior DWP officials on subjects including: Supply and demand of support, including for work coaches; Performance of Jobcentres against DWP’s current objectives; and Variations in outcome for different demographic groups or parts of the country. If you have evidence on these issues please submit it here by 23:59 on Thursday 1 May 2025. Please look at the requirements for written evidence submissions and note that the Committee cannot accept material as evidence that is published elsewhere. Please note that the Committee’s inquiry cannot assist with individual cases. If you need help with an individual problem you are having, you may wish to read the information on Parliament’s website about who you can contact with different issues . Show less

5 Recommendations

26 Conclusions

1 Report

1 Oral session

8 Letters

1 Event

Activity timeline 11 events

20 Apr
2026

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions to the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee relating to Jobce…

15 Sep
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the 36th Report of Session 2024-25, Jobcentres, 09 …

10 Jul
2025

Correspondence

Letter to the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to Jobcentre work coaches, 10 July 2025

2 Jul
2025

Report published

36th Report - Jobcentres

2 Jul
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the oral evidence session held on 15 May 2025 on Jo…

9 Jun
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Director General, Labour Market and Poverty at the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the oral evidence session o…

9 Jun
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the follow up on the oral evidence session on 15 Ma…

9 Jun
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the follow up on the oral evidence session on 15 Ma…

19 May
2025

Correspondence

Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the Fraud and Error Estimates and the Unfulfilled E…

15 May
2025

Oral evidence

Oral evidence session

15 May
2025

Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · The Grimond Room, Portcullis House

Committee event

Oral evidence sessions 1 session

15 May 2025

View on parliament.uk

Barbara Bennett · Department of Work and Pensions Katherine Green · Department for Work and Pensions Sir Peter Schofield KCB · Department for Work and Pensions

Reports 1 report · click to expand

Title	HC No.	Published	Items	Response
36th Report - Jobcentres	HC 823	2 Jul 2025	31	Responded

Recommendations & Conclusions

5 results

25 Conclusion Acknowledged

36th Report - Jobcentres

Department for Work and Pensions explores new evaluation methods for quicker jobs service development.

We asked how the Department will make sure it provides a better service without evidence.53 The Department said it wants to conduct evaluations in a different way, to get test results quickly in order to help develop the new jobs … Read more

Government Response

The government is using test and learn principles, including Pathfinders, to test the Jobs and Careers Service, and its evaluation strategy is under development with research to be published at a future date.

HM Treasury

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26 Conclusion Acknowledged

36th Report - Jobcentres

£55 million funding for jobs and careers service development allocated across three key areas.

In the 2024 Autumn Budget, the government allocated £55 million for the Department to invest in developing new digital services and testing elements of the jobs and careers service in 2025–26.55 We asked the Department what progress has been made … Read more

Government Response

The government outlines how the allocated £55 million is being spent on testing and developing the new Jobs and Careers Service, including pathfinder projects, digital services, and staff training.

HM Treasury

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27 Conclusion Acknowledged

36th Report - Jobcentres

Pathfinder projects trialling innovative job support, placing work coaches in GP surgeries.

The Department explained it has a phased approach to the jobs and careers service. It said its ‘pathfinder projects’ are part of the first phase, testing new ways of delivering its services. In phase two, in 2026–27, it told us … Read more

Government Response

HM Treasury

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28 Conclusion Acknowledged

36th Report - Jobcentres

A substantial amount of £55 million jobs and careers service funding remains unallocated.

The Department emphasised that its investment committee closely controls how it allocates the £55 million funding, and that it commits money for different proposals in packets. The Department also said, however, that it has not fully allocated the £55 million … Read more

Government Response

The government explains how the £55 million is being allocated for the Jobs and Careers Service, including testing, digital activity and staff training, and that re-allocations are possible within the programme governance.

HM Treasury

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31 Conclusion Acknowledged

36th Report - Jobcentres

Department established eight new outcome metrics to monitor employment reforms and publish data annually.

We asked the Department how it would measure the success of the new service and how it would measure the sustainability and quality of employment that people move into.63 In April 2025, the Department published Get Britain Working outcomes setting … Read more

Government Response

The government highlights that it has published a set of intermediate metrics alongside the 80% employment rate target, and it will publish annual progress updates against these, starting in Autumn 2025.

HM Treasury

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Government Response AI assessment · 14 of 5 classified

Accepted 5

Accepted in Part 2

Acknowledged 5

Not Addressed 2

Total 5 recs + 26 conclusions

Correspondence 8 letters

20 Apr 2026 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions to the Chair of the Public Accounts Committee relating to Jobcentres, 30 March

Parliament page

15 Sep 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the 36th Report of Session 2024-25, Jobcentres, 09 September 2025

Parliament page

10 Jul 2025 From committee Letter to the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to Jobcentre work coaches, 10 July 2025

Parliament page

2 Jul 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the oral evidence session held on 15 May 2025 on Jobcentres, 30 June 2025

Parliament page

9 Jun 2025 To committee Letter from the Director General, Labour Market and Poverty at the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the oral evidence session on 15 May on Jobcentres, 29 May 2025

Parliament page

9 Jun 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the follow up on the oral evidence session on 15 May on Jobcentres: Personal Independence Payments (PIP) claims, 29 May 2025

Parliament page

9 Jun 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the follow up on the oral evidence session on 15 May on Jobcentres: Jobcentres performance, 29 May 2025

Parliament page

19 May 2025 To committee Letter from the Permanent Secretary of the Department for Work and Pensions relating to the Fraud and Error Estimates and the Unfulfilled Eligibility in the Benefit System release, 15 May 2025

Parliament page