Jobcentre on Wheels to be rolled out throughout Britain – that is the place | EUROtoday

Mobile Jobcentre vans are to be launched throughout the UK as a method of “breaking down the barriers that stop people finding good work”.

Unveiling the growth following a pilot, Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden stated the Jobcentre on Wheels service is designed round “meeting people where they are”, together with unconventional places reminiscent of exterior leisure centres and inside municipal parks.

This initiative varieties a part of the federal government’s wider push to reform employment assist, aiming to fulfil a manifesto pledge amidst considerations over a rising nationwide unemployment charge.

“We want to break down the barriers that stop people from finding good work, and that means meeting people where they are,” Mr McFadden stated.

“Jobcentres on Wheels are doing exactly that – bringing employment support into the heart of communities.

“That’s why we’re building on the success we’ve already seen, expanding the service so we can unlock opportunities for even more people across the country.”

The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has trialled Jobcentre on Wheels vans within the Scottish Highlands, North and Mid Wales and Greater Manchester.

More autos will be a part of the fleet throughout six areas – in Barrow-in-Furness, Blackpool, Wakefield, North Nottinghamshire, Bridgend and Rhondda Cynon Taf, and North Somerset.

According to DWP knowledge, greater than half of the guests to the Jobcentre on Wheels service weren’t in receipt of advantages.

The Office for National Statistics estimated the unemployment charge for individuals aged 16 and over was at 5.1% between September and November final yr, up from 4.4 per cent throughout the identical interval in 2024.

It comes as Tesco’s UK chief, Ashwin Prasad warned final week that Britain is in peril of “sleepwalking into an epidemic” of joblessness.

Taking purpose at authorities insurance policies that enhance hiring prices for employers, Mr Prasad stated there had been a “clear, gradual change” over the previous decade in individuals falling out of the workforce.

He added that there are “far fewer people in work than there could be” and calling for vital change from the federal government in the way it tackles the difficulty.