A total of 85 customers were referred by DWP to DVSA Test Centres across the six priority locations. From this number, 37 passed the assessment and have been offered roles. DVSA provided feedback on a further 26 who were unsuccessful but showed clear potential and stated it would like to support these customers with a further test if DWP can provide refresher training. The remaining 22 customers were unsuccessful.

DVSA identified priority locations that had 5 or more live vacancies and provided the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) with a list. Following their external recruitment drive in January 2026, DVSA advised DWP that some of the locations initially identified were no longer considered high priority due to roles being filled. From the remaining sites on the list those chosen were where DVSA have managers with the flexibility to carry out assessments as part of the Driving Examiner recruitment pilot.

We are currently in the process of making referrals for these roles. Each location has the capacity to have 16 customers referred. Assessments will take place on 16 March (Slough & Southampton), 17 March (Tottenham & Bletchley) and 19 March (Bedford & Bromley).

Jobcentre Plus (JCP) actively promotes vacancies, including roles with the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency (DVSA), by matching a claimant’s skills and circumstances to available roles.

The DWP’s Strategic Relationship Team is working with the DVSA to test a new recruitment approach for Driving Examiner roles in six priority locations. This work involves the introduction of a one day assessment centre under a Direct Temporary Recruitment (DTR) model to create a faster and more efficient process. Part of this process will include JCP Work Coaches identifying suitable candidates, arranging informal discussions and driving assessments.

Locations deemed as priority sites by DVSA are Bedford, Bletchley, Bromley, Slough, Southampton and Tottenham in North London. Across theses initial pilot sites there will be at least 30 vacancies and capacity for up to 96 referrals.

The pilot will help determine whether this streamlined route can support areas that have been hardest to recruit for and whether it should be expanded to additional locations in future.

The information requested is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate cost.

Find A Job is a free platform to help jobseekers find vacancies with employers from various sectors. Employers are verified as legitimate and all jobs they advertise must comply with our terms and conditions: https://findajob.dwp.gov.uk/terms-and-conditions-employer.html.

The Department can confirm that such an assessment has been made and that direct engagement is not only permitted but actively encouraged.

Employers are already able to contact their local Jobcentre Plus directly through several well-established routes. The Employer Services Line (0800 169 0178) and an online enquiry form connect businesses with local Employer Advisers who provide tailored recruitment support. This includes help with writing job descriptions, promoting vacancies through local jobcentres and social media, arranging use of Jobcentre Plus premises for interviews, and facilitating participation in recruitment events such as job fairs.

For businesses with more complex or large-scale recruitment needs, the Strategic Relationship Team offers bespoke support at a national level. This includes tailored recruitment solutions, vacancy tracking, and coordination with local JobCentre Plus's to ensure effective delivery.

The Department continues to explore ways to improve employer engagement, including making JobCentre Plus premises more welcoming and accessible, and reviewing policies around the use of JobCentre Plus offices for interviews with non-DWP customers.

The Department for Work and Pensions has recently reviewed and continues to enhance the processes through which businesses advertise vacancies via Jobcentre Plus. Employers currently benefit from a range of flexible engagement routes:

• Direct Contact: Employers can reach out through the Employer Services Line or an online enquiry form to be connected with a local Employer Adviser, who provides tailored recruitment support.

• Find a Job Platform: This is DWP’s official online job posting service, free to use and accessible 24/7. It includes features such as bulk vacancy uploads, hybrid/remote job filters, and the ability to display Disability Confident status. When any employer uses Find a Job to post vacancies, they are also given the option to request contact from a local Employer Adviser for tailored recruitment support.

• Strategic Relationship Team: For large-scale or complex recruitment needs, the Strategic Relationship Team offers bespoke national-level support, including vacancy promotion, recruitment events, and candidate matching.

Feedback from employer summits and innovation workshops has directly informed ongoing improvements. Employers have highlighted the importance of making Jobcentre Plus environments more welcoming and accessible. In response, best practice sharing is underway to improve the employer experience. Additionally, policy teams are reviewing the use of Jobcentre Plus premises for interviewing candidates who are not DWP customers. A new system has also been introduced to monitor employer engagement and campaign outcomes more effectively.

As set out in the Get Britain Working White Paper, we are reforming Jobcentre Plus and creating a new service that will enable everyone to access support to find good, meaningful work, and support to help them to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers. As part of this, we will transform DWP’s employer offer and the way in which we engage with employers, using a test and learn approach to ensure the new service works hand in hand with them to help recruit the staff they need. The new service will support a broader range of employers, including those requiring skilled and specialist talent, to find the candidates they need. We will also work with employers to understand how to overcome the impact of recruitment practices which can act as a barrier for applicants, ensuring that a wide range of candidates can access employers’ vacancies regardless of these barriers.

DWP has not only assessed but is actively evolving its vacancy advertising processes through Jobcentre Plus. The combination of employer feedback, strategic planning, and digital innovation ensures that the service is becoming more responsive, inclusive, and effective for businesses of all sizes.

A) Claimant count data for the UK is published and available at: Nomis - Official Census and Labour Market Statistics.

Data on the number of people claiming out of work benefits is published and available at: Stat-Xplore - Home.

B) There are no published statistics on job vacancies by job centre. However, the number of online job adverts by local authorities can be found here: Labour demand volumes by Standard Occupation Classification (SOC 2020), UK - Office for National Statistics

The local Jobcentre team are collaborating with a range of partners to support people into work and help employers fill vacancies. In addition to hosting job fairs and delivering Sector-Based Work Academy Programmes (SWAPs). Romford Jobcentre is working with Havering Council, local colleges, childcare providers and other organisations to provide an employment and skills offer to help meet the recruitment needs of local employers.

This includes outreach support at the Rainham Childrens Centre and Havering Council, working with family practitioners, social workers, and probation to provide a holistic approach to supporting families in the borough, as well as support with CV preparation provided through Havering Library service, a Job Fair delivered in partnership with Havering Works and SWAPs delivered with Havering Adult College.

Disability Employment Advisers offer advice and expertise on how to help disabled people and people with health conditions into work, alongside close working with Change Grow Live, Havering Talking therapies, Havering Mind, the Social Prescribing team, and Richmond Fellowship. Romford Jobcentre colleagues also attend local events to highlight the support available, as well as Access to Work and Disability Confident.

The world’s biggest Lidl warehouse, in Houghton Regis, is not only half a kilometre long and can deliver 9,400 pallets a day; it is also creating 1,500 jobs. What specific help can Jobcentre Plus give to employers such as Lidl, which has a huge number of vacancies to fill in my constituency?

It is fantastic to hear of the job opportunities created by Lidl in South West Bedfordshire. I know my hon. Friend will be working hard with Lidl and his local jobcentre to make sure the vacancies are filled with local talent. Jobcentres can work closely with large employers, as I have recently seen at Morrisons, which has a specific neurodiversity pilot to bring people into the job market. The barriers that restrict neurodiverse people are often challenges around confidence and so on. Jobcentres are a brilliant force for good, and I recommend that everybody engages with them on bespoke schemes for neurodiversity or any other focus on tackling long-term unemployment.

We have seen 130,000 people going into work through kickstart, working with employers. Way to Work is exactly the same, so we can showcase that local talent to local employers at JCPs.

When the lovely Karen came in to celebrate her new job, I saw at first-hand the impact of work coaches like Victor and Harlon at Eastbourne’s Jobcentre Plus. The untold story is perhaps how brilliantly the same Jobcentre Plus can support employers. What work is the Minister and the Department doing to promote that aspect of their work, so we can double down on local unfilled vacancies?

Chris Green (Bolton West) (Con):

As the furlough programme comes to an end, a great many people will be concerned about their prospects. Does my hon. Friend share my appreciation of the work of the Bolton and Leigh jobcentres and all the work that they have done to make sure that they are fully prepared to support people during this difficult time? Will she also welcome the fact that many employers locally are reporting that they have jobs for people to go to?

I hugely appreciate the endeavours of all our work coaches, especially and including those in Bolton and Leigh JCPs. The Office for National Statistics says that our new monthly experimental vacancy data suggest that we are almost back to the pre-pandemic level in terms of vacancies; it was over 800,000 in May. Through our Jobcentre Plus provision, we have a wide variety of support available to help employers to fill those vacancies.