Government to close one in 10 jobcentres in shake-up of services

The Government has announced plans to close one in 10 Jobcentres as part of plans for "under-used" buildings.

Union bosses have vowed to fight the closures.

However, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) says the shake-up of support will mean the unemployed get improved access to help.

Under the plans, 78 smaller Jobcentre Plus offices in urban areas of England, Wales and Scotland will be merged with larger premises.

That number would be in on top of 22 others already slated to be shut.

In addition to those closures, 50 other sites would co-locate to bring local authority services under a single roof.

The plans also include shutting 27 back office buildings, such as call centres and administration support offices, to merge operations into five larger premises.

The Public and Commercial Services (PCS) union said it would oppose any building closures, saying the plans place thousands of jobs at risk.

General secretary Mark Serwotka said: "Jobcentres provide a lifeline for unemployed people, and forcing them to travel further is not only unfair, it undermines support to get them back to work.

"We are opposed to these closures and will vigorously fight any attempt to force DWP workers out of their jobs."

The DWP insisted the vast majority of staff would be redeployed, saying any redundancies would be "very small" but over 700 people could go.

It said the measures would save an estimated £180m annually over 10 years as onerous building leases were erased.

Employment Minister Damian Hinds said: "We will always make sure that people have the support they need to get into and progress within work, that's why we are recruiting 2,500 more work coaches to help those who need it most.

"The way the world works has changed rapidly in the last 20 years and the welfare state needs to keep pace.

"As more people access their benefits through the internet, many of our buildings are under-used. We are concentrating our resources on what we know best helps people into work.

"The changes we've announced today will help ensure that the way we deliver our services reflect the reality of today's welfare system."

The union, which represents 50,000 of around 80,000 DWP staff, said the plans meant that at least 18 of the threatened centres were outside a commitment previously given by ministers that no site would close if it would take 20 minutes or more to reach the nearest site by public transport.