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

5 results
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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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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