Select committee: Work and Pensions Committee
Recommendation 8
4th Report – Get Britain Working: Reforming Jobcentres
Published 8 Sep 2025
Addressed to Department for Work and Pensions
Work and Pensions Committee Get Britain Working: Reforming Jobcentres All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
DWP should set out more detail about how it will build a systems-based approach to safeguarding into the new jobs and careers service, including its conditionality and sanctions policy. We previously recommended that the Chief Medical Advisor assess the potential health impact on claimants of all policy changes, and we expect such an assessment to take place before any changes to Jobcentres and work coach support. (Recommendation, Paragraph 43) Empowering work coaches
From: Work and Pensions Committee, 4th Report – Get Britain Working: Reforming Jobcentres (HC 653), 8 September 2025
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 13 November 2025 (deadline 8 November 2025).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government partially accepts or accepts most of the Committee's recommendations on reforming Jobcentres, does not accept three, and says it will publish a report in spring 2026 setting out more detail on delivering the new Jobs and Careers Service.
- On the Claimant Commitment, it partially accepts the recommendation, does "not agree that a public consultation is necessary at this stage" as changes are already being tested in the Pathfinder, and will review the policy once initial findings are available.
- On sanctions, it partially accepts, saying there is "a place for sanctions" where claimants do not meet reasonable requirements without good reason. It has "no current plans for further research" but will keep this under review.
- It accepts the recommendation to review the work coach model, and says a review bringing together the available evidence on work coach and third-party employment support "will be published by the end of 2026".
- It does not accept the recommendations on work coach capacity modelling, an AI ethics framework for employment support, or restoring the 3-month period to search in a preferred sector. On the last, it will "actively consider" whether the policy remains appropriate.