[holding answer 27 October 2008]: The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Lesley Strathie:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question, pursuant to the Answer of 20"1 October, Official Report, columns 19-20, on jobcentres, what his definition is of front line staff; and how many (a) full-time equivalent staff and (b) front line full-time equivalent staff were employed in each jobcentre in Argyll and Bute in each year since 2004.
The number of frontline full time equivalent staff employed in the following Jobcentres in Argyll and Bute is as follows. All staff working in a Jobcentre are regarded as frontline staff.
Office 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 Campbeltown 23.14 18.1 14.56 10.95 10.95 Dunoon 14.35 11.54 14.54 9.54 9.54 Helensburgh 13.77 9.77 8.77 9.77 7.77 Oban 29.33 28.09 18.26 17.99 15.99 Rothesay 11.96 10.42 9.42 7.41 6.41 Note: Headcount figures are quoted in full-time equivalents using the Office for National Statistics criteria for counting headcount and details the position at March in each year. Source: Jobcentre Plus Management Information Portal
It should be noted that the activities carried out in Jobcentres in 2008 are not the same as those carried out in 2004 as a result of the transfer of processing activities to Benefit Delivery Centres. For this reason it could be misleading to compare the staffing levels year on year.
The administration of Jobcentre Plus is a matter for the chief executive of Jobcentre Plus, Lesley Strathie. I have asked her to provide the hon. Member with the information requested.
Letter from Lesley Strathie:
The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your question asking how many (a) Jobcentre Plus staff and (b) customer facing Jobcentre Plus staff there were (i) in total, (ii) in each region and (iii) in each Jobcentre Plus district in each of the next 3 years; and if he will make a statement. This is something which falls within the responsibilities delegated to me as Chief Executive of Jobcentre Plus.
The Department’s Comprehensive Spending Review (CSR) 2007 settlement provides for the following staffing numbers in Jobcentre Plus:
March each year Number 2009 65,453 2010 61,985 2011 58,529
We do not have a future breakdown of this staffing by the categories you request.
Our plans are under active review in the light of the current economic situation. We are already planning for Jobcentre Plus to have 2,000 more staff than the original assumption to enable us to respond to increasing numbers of customers. We do not yet have the detailed plans which describe the revised numbers for this year below a national level.