150 new jobcentres and Youth Hubs now open

Thousands more jobseekers can now access tailored face-to-face job support and meet local employers as 150 new jobcentres are opened.

Towns and cities from Falkirk to Torquay are now home to over 150 new temporary jobcentres and over 150 Youth Hubs, with more to follow, as the government pledges to get 500,000 people a job by the end of June.

A further 50 jobcentres are expected to open to the public in the coming months as efforts ramp up to get jobseekers into work faster, through the Way to Work campaign, by bringing them face to face with employers and encouraging them to look for work in a sector they may not have previously considered.

Thérèse Coffey, Work and Pensions Secretary of State, said: “We know how much people benefit from getting into work – both financially and for their wellbeing. And from getting any job first, they can get a better job next and then progress to a career. Jobcentres and Youth Hubs are crucial to get people into work, and will help level up opportunity across the country as through our Way to Work campaign we invite employers wherever they are to work with us and help find 500,000 people a job by the end of June.”

Kevin Bentley, chairman of the Local Government Association’s People and Places Board, said: “Everybody should have the chance to work or retrain, to help increase their skills and progress without having to move away from home. The labour market has changed significantly due to the pandemic, so people need joined up local support including training and careers advice to go into long-term, satisfactory employment.

“Councils are ideally placed to help achieve this, bringing together government, agencies and providers alongside their local leadership and expert knowledge of their areas, as we identified in our Work Local programme.

“This also builds on the place based employment and skills pathfinders announced in the Levelling Up White Paper. We look forward to working with government departments on how to accelerate the work already underway to extend devolution to more areas, as well as strengthen existing devolution deals. With the right resources and flexibility, councils working with national and local partners can deliver the jobs and skills for residents in their communities.”