36th Report - Jobcentres

Select Committee
Public Accounts Committee HC 823 2 July 2025
Report Status Government responded
Conclusions & Recommendations 31 items (6 recs)
Source View on Parliament website
Government Response (AI assessment · 31 of 31 classified)
Accepted 17
Accepted in Part 3
Acknowledged 5
Deferred 4
Not Addressed 2
Government response
Treasury Minutes: Government response - 36th Report
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Recommendations & Conclusions

31 results
2 Recommendation Accepted
Develop a workforce plan to ensure sufficient work coaches for the new jobs and careers service.
Recommendation
We are concerned that the Department will continue to not have enough work coaches to meet the growing demand for support. The shortage of work coaches has been caused by the Department securing inadequate funding from HM Treasury and by … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and commits to developing a strategic workforce plan within 12 months as part of the Jobs and Careers Service Programme, which will anticipate workforce needs and ensure appropriate work coach resourcing.
HM Treasury
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3 Recommendation Accepted in Part
Increase transparency by regularly publishing jobcentre-level data on work coach numbers and into-work rates.
Recommendation
The Department does not publish data on work coach numbers or into-work rates, which means it is not clear how well local jobcentres are supporting claimants to work. The Department publishes data on its Stat-Xplore platform relating to the number … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees to develop a labour market publication strategy to increase transparency, expecting to publish into-work rates and some labour market data at a Jobcentre Plus District level. However, it will not publish data on Work Coach numbers as this data is not assured to official statistics quality standards.
HM Treasury
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4 Recommendation Accepted
Publish a strategy for evaluating employment support reforms and regularly refreshing the evidence base.
Recommendation
The Department has not evaluated the effectiveness of its approach to supporting claimants to work for a decade. The Department does not have an up-to-date evidence base from which to assess the suitability of its current approach to supporting claimants … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, pointing to its recently published Evidence and Evaluation Strategy 2025. It details ongoing Universal Credit trials with findings due by the end of 2026, and an evaluation strategy for the Jobs and Careers Service is under development.
HM Treasury
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5 Recommendation Accepted
Write to the Committee outlining committed and planned spending of £55 million for jobs service.
Recommendation
It is not fully clear how the Department is spending the £55 million allocated for 2025–26 to test elements of the new jobs and careers service. In the 2024 Autumn Budget, the government allocated £55 million for the Department to … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and confirms the recommendation is implemented, providing a detailed breakdown of how the £55 million for 2025-26 has been allocated across tests and trials (£15m), alternative delivery solutions (£5m), digital activity (£20m), and resources/staffing (£13m, including a £2m contingency).
HM Treasury
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6 Recommendation Accepted in Part
Publish a roadmap for achieving 80% employment rate and jobcentres' specific contribution and monitoring.
Recommendation
Achieving an employment rate of 80% is likely to be very challenging. The Government’s long-term ambition is to achieve an employment rate of 80%. This would represent a considerable increase – from May 2018 to October 2024, the employment rate … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the recommendation, stating it has published intermediate metrics and will publish annual progress updates starting Autumn 2025 related to the 80% employment ambition. However, it defers setting out the specific contribution of jobcentres, stating it will consider this as part of a future performance refresh.
HM Treasury
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1 Conclusion Not Addressed
Committee took evidence from DWP on jobcentres following C&AG report.
Conclusion
On the basis of a report by the Comptroller and Auditor General, we took evidence from the Department for Work and Pensions (the Department) on jobcentres.1
Government Response Summary
The committee item is a factual statement about taking evidence from the DWP. The government responds by stating it takes its responsibilities seriously regarding work coaches and details letters sent to the committee, claiming the 'recommendation' is implemented, despite the item not being an actual recommendation.
HM Treasury
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7 Conclusion Not Addressed
DWP consistently had fewer work coaches than estimated need across jobcentres.
Conclusion
For the first six months of 2024–25, the Department assessed it would need on average 18,900 work coaches but had funding for between 17,600 and 18,000.9 The Department told us it forecasts demand on a six-monthly cycle but plans resource … Read more
Government Response Summary
Despite an initial statement of agreement, the government's response discusses a Water Reform Bill and the establishment of a single water regulator, which is entirely unrelated to the committee's conclusion about work coach numbers and funding.
HM Treasury
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8 Conclusion Deferred
Recruitment and retention challenges contribute to work coach shortfalls in jobcentres.
Conclusion
The Department has also had fewer work coaches than it has had funding for, which it attributed to factors such as challenges with recruiting and retaining staff. The turnover rate for the Department’s executive officers working in jobcentres, including work … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the observation and states it will develop a strategic workforce plan within 12 months, with a target implementation date of Summer 2026, to support a new Jobs and Careers Service.
HM Treasury
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9 Conclusion Accepted
Government plans to establish new universal jobs and careers service by 2028-29.
Conclusion
In November 2024, the government published its Get Britain Working white paper that set out plans for reforming employment support including a new jobs and careers service, bringing together jobcentres with the National Careers Service in England. The Department aims … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, detailing specific funding allocations for 2025-26, including £15 million for tests and trials and £20 million for digital activity, to design and test the new Jobs and Careers Service.
HM Treasury
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10 Conclusion Deferred
DWP's universal jobs service relies on digital tools, with uncertain impact on overall processing times.
Conclusion
We asked the Department how realistic its plan is for a universal jobs and careers service given the current shortage of work coaches. The Department said it envisages a ‘pyramid’ with, at the top, a larger number of people who … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the observation and will develop a strategic workforce plan within the next 12 months, with a target implementation date of Summer 2026, to ensure appropriate work coach resourcing for the evolving Jobs and Careers Service.
HM Treasury
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11 Conclusion Accepted
Redeployment of work coaches for health conditions reduces support for other Universal Credit claimants.
Conclusion
In March 2025, the government published a green paper, Pathways to Work, which set out proposals to reform health and disability benefits and employment support, with the aim of providing tailored employment, health and skills support for claimants with a … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states that its Pathways to Work green paper and Get Britain Working White Paper, backed by significant funding, will support employment for people with health conditions and disabilities. It will publish annual progress updates against intermediate metrics, with the first update in Autumn 2025.
HM Treasury
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12 Conclusion Accepted
More than half of jobcentres reduced claimant support due to work coach shortages.
Conclusion
To help deal with the shortfall in work coaches, the Department allows jobcentres that are under the most pressure in terms of work coaches’ caseload to reduce the support they provide for claimants. In September 2023, the Department introduced a … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government has made certain elements of the local flexibility framework permanent as part of a revised approach to resourcing, providing detailed evidence to the Committee for these changes and considering the recommendation implemented.
HM Treasury
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13 Conclusion Accepted
DWP claims reduced jobcentre support does not impact outcomes despite outdated evidence.
Conclusion
We asked the Department how concerned we should be that over half of jobcentres have had to reduce their support for Universal Credit claimants due to the shortage of work coaches. The Department told us that we should not be … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government has made certain elements of the local flexibility framework permanent, stating this new approach ensures claimants have the right support and providing evidence to the Committee for these changes, thereby considering the recommendation implemented.
HM Treasury
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14 Conclusion Accepted
DWP attributes declining into-work rates to external factors and increasingly complex claimant caseloads.
Conclusion
However, the Department also told us that it was concerned about the into-work rate, which has been declining since 2021–22.28 The rate increased to 9.7% in 2021–22, but declined in the following two years, to 8.2% in 2023–24. The Department … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, outlining its existing "Get Britain Working White Paper" roadmap, "Pathways to Work" funding, and wider cross-government initiatives to achieve an 80% employment rate and improve into-work rates.
HM Treasury
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15 Recommendation Accepted
Concerns raised about quality and consistency of jobcentre support despite DWP assurances.
Recommendation
The Department said that, even when implementing all the measures up to level five of its flexibility framework, including to meet all Intensive Work Search claimants fortnightly after 13 weeks rather than some of them weekly, its work coaches can … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, referencing prior letters that detailed a revised approach to work coach resourcing and priorities, including making elements of the local flexibility framework permanent.
HM Treasury
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16 Conclusion Accepted
DWP considering making temporary flexibility framework measures permanent, pending impact assessment.
Conclusion
The Department is examining whether some of the measures in the local flexibility framework could be made permanent to help manage demand pressures without adversely affecting outcomes for claimants.34 We asked the Department what measures could be made permanent and … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states it has made certain elements of the local flexibility framework permanent as part of a revised approach to resourcing levels and priorities. It has provided the Committee with detailed evidence for these changes and considers the recommendation implemented.
HM Treasury
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17 Conclusion Deferred
DWP's new jobcentre performance framework lacks historical data for most key indicators.
Conclusion
The Department requires its jobcentres to provide a nationally consistent, centrally defined service that it judges will maximise employment and earnings for Universal Credit claimants.36 In November 2023, the Department introduced a new performance framework to monitor the operation of … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states its jobcentre performance management framework, including KPIs and support mechanisms, is currently under review. This review will reflect changes related to the development of the new Jobs and Careers Service, with changes expected by Autumn 2025.
HM Treasury
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18 Conclusion Accepted
National into-work rate declined significantly with substantial regional and district variations.
Conclusion
In terms of the performance of jobcentres over time, the average monthly into-work rate reduced during the COVID-19 pandemic from 8.8% in 2018–19 to 7.2% in 2020–21. The rate then increased to 9.7% in 2021–22, but declined in the following … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and commits to developing a labour market publication strategy before the end of 2025, which will include publishing into-work rates and some labour market data at a Jobcentre Plus District level to enhance transparency.
HM Treasury
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19 Conclusion Accepted
DWP attributes declining into-work rate to external factors, but its scope is limited.
Conclusion
We asked the Department how concerned it was about the drop in the into-work rate nationally in the last two years and what the reasons are for the decrease. The Department told us it was concerned but that there are … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government highlights its existing Get Britain Working White Paper and Pathways to Work initiatives, backed by significant funding, to support employment for people with health conditions and disabilities. The department will publish annual progress updates against intermediate employment metrics from Autumn 2025.
HM Treasury
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20 Conclusion Accepted in Part
Department for Work and Pensions does not publish vital work coach and jobcentre performance data.
Conclusion
We asked the Department why it does not publish information at a more granular level, particularly relating to the shortfall of work coaches. The Department told us that there is a lot of data available on its Stat-Xplore platform including … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees to develop a labour market publication strategy by the end of 2025, including into-work rates and labour market data at a Jobcentre Plus District level. However, it will not publish work coach numbers due to data quality concerns.
HM Treasury
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21 Conclusion Deferred
Significant variation in work coach headcount observed across different jobcentres and districts.
Conclusion
We followed this up by asking whether within districts there are areas that are performing better. The Department confirmed that within districts there is variation in headcount numbers at jobcentre level.47 The Department emphasised that it manages performance and attrition … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states its jobcentre performance management framework is currently under review, with changes to reflect the new Jobs and Careers Service expected by Autumn 2025.
HM Treasury
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22 Conclusion Accepted
Jobcentre support model based on outdated Jobseeker's Allowance evaluations, not Universal Credit.
Conclusion
The Department designed its central support model at jobcentres based on evaluations it carried out from 2005 to 2015. These evaluations were randomised control trials that assessed the impact of adjusting aspects of the meetings between claimants and work coaches.49 … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees with the conclusion, states the recommendation is implemented, and confirms it is already refreshing its evidence base through two ongoing Universal Credit trials, with findings expected by the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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23 Conclusion Accepted
Developing new evidence for claimant support via randomised control trials proves challenging and lengthy.
Conclusion
We asked the Department why its evidence base for its current model for supporting claimants is so old. The Department told us it is challenging to develop a new evidence base using randomised control trials, which it describes as the … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, confirming its commitment to refreshing its evidence base through ongoing Universal Credit trials, with findings to be published by the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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24 Conclusion Accepted
New trials for claimant support model currently underway, with results expected 2025-2026.
Conclusion
The Department is working to enhance its evidence base and explore the impact of potential changes to its support model. It has carried out research to identify which aspects of work search review meetings between work coaches and claimants make … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government agrees and states the recommendation is implemented, affirming its commitment to refreshing its evidence base through ongoing Universal Credit trials, with findings to be published by the end of 2026.
HM Treasury
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25 Conclusion Acknowledged
Department for Work and Pensions explores new evaluation methods for quicker jobs service development.
Conclusion
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 Summary
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
£55 million funding for jobs and careers service development allocated across three key areas.
Conclusion
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 Summary
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
Pathfinder projects trialling innovative job support, placing work coaches in GP surgeries.
Conclusion
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 Summary
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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28 Conclusion Acknowledged
A substantial amount of £55 million jobs and careers service funding remains unallocated.
Conclusion
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 Summary
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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29 Conclusion Accepted
Employment rate consistently falls short of government's long-term 80% target since 2018.
Conclusion
In its November 2024 white paper Get Britain Working, the government described its plans to reform employment support as the first steps to achieving its long-term ambition to achieve an 80% employment rate. From May 2018 to October 2024, the … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states that it has already set out a roadmap in the Get Britain Working White Paper and highlights the Pathways to Work programme and other cross-government initiatives that contribute to the 80% employment rate ambition.
HM Treasury
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30 Conclusion Accepted
Achieving an 80% national employment rate remains a significantly stretching aspiration for the Department.
Conclusion
We asked the Department how big a challenge it will be to get to 80%. The Department told us that it clearly is a stretching aspiration. The Department explained that, to achieve an 80% employment rate, its focus is on … Read more
Government Response Summary
The government states that it has already set out a roadmap in the Get Britain Working White Paper and highlights the Pathways to Work programme and other cross-government initiatives that contribute to the 80% employment rate ambition.
HM Treasury
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31 Conclusion Acknowledged
Department established eight new outcome metrics to monitor employment reforms and publish data annually.
Conclusion
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 Summary
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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