FURTHER MODERNISATION OF DWP ANNOUNCED

29 Jun 2004 11:45 AM

The next steps in the modernisation of the Department for Work and Pensions were announced today as part of the DWP's four year programme to reduce its workforce by 30,000 posts.

The key points are:

* Since 2001, the department has been rationalising its office network. The creation of Jobcentre Plus and The Pension Service combined the old benefits agency and employment service networks into two new agencies in modern offices that are focused on actively helping our customers
* The Pension Service has centralised its processing work into bespoke, larger centres providing economies of scale
* The work of The Pension Service, including achieving the department's PSA target of at least 3 million households in receipt of Pension Credit by 2006, can be delivered from a substantially smaller number of Pension Centres than the current 29, now that the initial take-up phase has been successfully completed
* Some of this pension centre capacity can be utilised to improve the efficiency of benefit processing in Jobcentre Plus. Previously this processing would have been carried out in some 650 sites. We can now plan to concentrate this in some 100 Benefit Processing Centres * With these substantial efficiency improvements, we can continue to invest in the New Deal and other programmes to help children, pensioners and disabled people.

A number of changes in the way the department is organised are therefore being announced today:

* The existing regional layer of management in The Pension Service will be rationalised into three large regions
* Over time, work from eight Pension Centres will transfer together with staff, to other parts of the DWP. Jobcentre Plus will take over Derby, Norwich, Nottingham, Wolverhampton, Stockton and Wrexham. The site at Burnley will transfer to the Appeals Service and the Child Support Agency will take over the Plymouth site
* Two Pension Centres, Liverpool and York, will no longer be required for Pensions work and no alternative DWP use has been identified. The Department will be actively seeking interest from the private sector and elsewhere in Government, taking into account planned relocation of Civil Service work from London and the South East in line with the recent Lyons Review. Closure will follow if no interest can be found.

All staff who are affected by these changes are being informed today and we are working closely with Trade Unions to implement these changes. We will be providing a wide range of support for staff including using Jobcentre Plus services as appropriate.

Andrew Smith said:

"Through substantial investment over the past few years we have already started to transform DWP into an organisation that is focused around the needs of our customers. This investment and reform is transforming the welfare state into an efficient system, tightly focused on actively supporting and empowering people so that they can achieve their potential and get the help they are entitled.

"Modern IT and improved processes mean we can now get more resources to the front line so that we continue to deliver this high quality service with increasing efficiency. While any job losses are regrettable, improving efficiency will release resources to make further progress on child and pensioner poverty and get even closer to full employment."

Richard Mottram, Permanent Secretary said:

" DWP is committed to one of the largest change programmes in Europe over the next four years and beyond. It will inevitably be unsettling for our staff. We are committed to keeping them up to date with decisions as they are made and handling this in a transparent way.

"Staff in areas directly affected will get more detailed information face-to-face from their managers. Consultations with our Trade Unions have already begun and we have made proposals for handling these changes through staff redeployment, voluntary release schemes and, as a last resort, compulsory redundancies."

Detailed planning has been taking place across the Department to implement the spending reviews. This has included discussions on the future size and shape of The Pension Service, consolidating benefit processing in Jobcentre Plus, the improvements we're making in the Child Support Agency, The Appeals Service and our corporate services.

Public enquiries: 020 7712 2171
Website: www.dwp.gov.uk