Department for Work and Pensions

The government is committed to supporting customers into secure employment, including highly skilled and experienced jobseekers.

DWP currently offers tailored, flexible advice and employment support through its network of Jobcentres across the UK. Work Coaches offer all customers a comprehensive menu of help, including referral into skills provision and job search support.

In addition, the National Careers Service provides free, up to date, impartial information, advice and guidance on careers, skills and the Labour Market in England. Further information about the National Careers Service can be found online by visiting https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk.

As part of our plans to Get Britain Working, we are reforming Jobcentre Plus and creating a new, more personalised, Jobs and Careers Service. This will enable everyone, including experienced and skilled jobseekers, to access support to find good, meaningful work. It will support people to progress in work, including through an enhanced focus on skills and careers.

We are also transforming DWP’s employer commitment and working with a broader range of employers, including those requiring skilled and specialist talent, to offer customers jobs that match their skillset and qualifications.

This information is not held centrally and to provide it would incur disproportionate costs.

Statistics on the number of children living in relative poverty on a before housing costs basis for Poole constituency are published annually in the “Children in low income families: local area statistics” publication.

An assessment of trends in child poverty in Poole can be made using Table “5_Relative_ParlC” in the latest published version, available here: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2024 - GOV.UK.

The Child Poverty Taskforce is progressing work to publish our ambitious, UK-wide Child Poverty Strategy this autumn, that will deliver measures to tackle the structural and root causes of child poverty.

The Department does not hold official statistics on the number of registered food banks created between 2010 and 2024.

Food banks are independent organisations, often run by charities, faith groups, or community organisations, and are not regulated or registered centrally by the Government.

We are committed to tackling poverty and reducing mass dependence on emergency food parcels. To inform this work, DWP officials have engaged with a range of organisations to better understand the complex food support landscape.

To further support struggling households, we are providing £742 million to extend the House-hold Support Fund (HSF) in England until 31 March 2026, enabling local authorities to continue to provide vulnerable households with immediate crisis support towards the cost of essentials, such as energy, water and food.

Starting from 1 April 2026, we have announced a further £842 million a year (£1 billion including Barnett consequential) to reform crisis support with the new Crisis and Resilience Fund, supporting our wider mission to reduce child poverty by reducing dependence on food parcels, preventing homelessness and making sure people can access urgent support when they need it.

Statistics on food bank use by working-age and pension-age people are published annually in the Households below average income statistics report. The most recent publication is available here: Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2024 - GOV.UK

National and England regional breakdowns should be calculated using three-year rolling aver-ages via Stat-Xplore. Due to small sample sizes, it is not possible to produce estimates of food bank use at the constituency level, including for Poole.

We are committed to tackling poverty and reducing mass dependence on emergency food parcels. To inform this work, DWP officials have engaged with a range of organisations to better understand the complex food support landscape.

To further support struggling households, we are providing £742 million to extend the Household Support Fund (HSF) in England until 31 March 2026, enabling local authorities to continue to provide vulnerable households with immediate crisis support towards the cost of essentials, such as energy, water and food.

Starting from 1 April 2026, we have announced a further £842 million a year (£1 billion including Barnett consequential) to reform crisis support with the new Crisis and Resilience Fund, supporting our wider mission to reduce child poverty by reducing dependence on food parcels, preventing homelessness and making sure people can access urgent support when they need it.

This government is transforming the apprenticeships offer into a new growth and skills offer, which will offer greater flexibility to employers and learners and support the industrial strategy.

In August we introduced new foundation apprenticeships for young people in targeted sectors, as well as shorter duration apprenticeships. These flexibilities will help more people learn new high-quality skills at work and fuel innovation in businesses across the country.

To support employers to offer apprenticeships, the government provides £1,000 payments to employers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19 to 24-year-old apprentices who have an education, health and care plan or have been, or are, in care. Government also pays employers up to £2,000 for eligible foundation apprenticeships to contribute to the extra costs of supporting someone at the beginning of their career. Employers also benefit from not being required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25, when the employee’s wage is below £50,270 a year.

Managing customer journey times for PIP claimants is a priority for the department and we are working constantly to improve our service.

Our aim is to make an award decision, including on an award review decision, as quickly as possible, taking into account the need to review all the available evidence, including that from the claimant, and ensuring that the decision is robust.

The causes of homelessness are multi-faceted and often complex; they interact dynamically making it very difficult to isolate the relative importance of individual factors. Responsibility for housing and homelessness is devolved to the Welsh Government, while social security is reserved to the UK Government.

In April 2024, Local Housing Allowance (LHA) was increased to the 30^th percentile of local market rents, including across Wales, costing an additional £1.2bn in 2024/25 and approximately £7bn over 5 years.

The Secretary of State reviews LHA rates annually in the Autumn, this includes consideration of latest rental data, stakeholder evidence from organisations across GB, including in Wales, homelessness levels and the current challenging fiscal environment. Future funding decisions will be taken in the context of Government priorities.

For those who need further support, Discretionary Housing Payments (DHPs) are available from local authorities.

DWP will be launching a new campaign at the end of January 2026. This campaign will focus on the three greatest key loss areas for the Department – living together, self-employed, and capital & savings. It will run across a range of channels, including on demand video, out-of-home, digital display, paid search and paid social.

The campaign’s communications objectives are to increase awareness of the consequences of not reporting changes of circumstances to DWP and to increase understanding of the types of changes of circumstances that need to be reported amongst Universal Credit customers.

Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group. Access to the right support, in the right place, at the right time, is crucial.

Jobcentre Plus provides tailored, person-centred support to young disabled people, focusing on their individual needs. Disability Employment Advisors (DEAs) provide personalise support for people with health conditions and disabilities to enable them to achieve appropriate and sustainable employment. DEAs work closely with Youth Employability Coaches (YECs), who deliver longer-term support, specifically for young people facing with complex to work. Both DEAs and YECs work with partner organisations to ensure access to expert advice.

The Department for Work and Pensions and the Department for Education continue to work closely with the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA) on the design and delivery of their Youth Guarantee Trailblazer. WMCA has actively engaged its seven Local Authorities, which includes Birmingham, to co-develop and test place-based solutions aimed at tackling high youth unemployment, economic inactivity, and declining apprenticeship opportunities. Examples of programmes being delivered through the Trailblazer include work experience placements, pre-apprenticeship training, and NEET prevention. This locally tailored support is also accessible to young people with health conditions and disabilities. Insights from the Trailblazer will inform future national policy and delivery.

In addition, young people with health conditions and disabilities can benefit from other locally delivered programmes such as Connect to Work and Workwell. Connect to Work, is a voluntary, high-fidelity programme, connecting work, health and skills support for people with challenges to employment, including health and disability. Workwell, provides a light touch intervention which focuses on prevention and support for people in work to sustain employment. It also supports people who have fallen out of work due to health and disability to return to the workplace.

We are committed to tackling poverty and ending mass dependence on emergency food parcels. We are expanding Free School Meals to every pupil whose household is in receipt of Universal Credit, which will lift 100,000 children out of poverty by the end of this Parliament, and introducing a new £1 billion package (including Barnett impact) to reform crisis support, including funding to ensure the poorest children do not go hungry outside of term time.

This comes alongside £600 million for the Holiday Activities and Food Programme across the next three financial years as well as expanding free breakfast clubs, increasing the national minimum wage for those on the lowest incomes and supporting 700,000 of the poorest families by introducing a Fair Repayment Rate on Universal Credit deductions.

The Child Poverty Taskforce will publish a Child Poverty Strategy in the autumn that will deliver measures to tackle the structural and root causes of child poverty. The Strategy will tackle overall child poverty as well as going beyond that to focus on children in deepest poverty lacking essentials, and what is needed to give every child the best start in life.

We know that good work can significantly reduce the chances of people falling into poverty. Our Get Britain Working White Paper, backed by an initial £240 million investment in 2025/26, will target and tackle economic inactivity and unemployment and join up employment, health and skills support to meet the needs of local communities.

There are a number of apprenticeships available to support employers of all sizes in the hospitality sector to benefit from and develop the skilled workforces they need.

The government has reduced the apprenticeship minimum duration to 8 months so that shorter apprenticeships are possible from August 2025. Employers in the hospitality sector will be able to make use of this flexibility where this is appropriate for the role or the apprentice.

To support apprenticeships in small and medium-sized enterprises the government pays full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been, or are, in local authority care.

In addition, the government is delivering a hospitality Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP) pilot, launched in partnership with UKHospitality. This pilot is being rolled out to 26 new areas in need of jobs and opportunity. These SWAPs support participants to gain accreditation for a digital Hospitality Skills Passport which is designed to provide proof that a person is qualified to perform their job effectively and safely, giving them a universal entry standard into the sector.

Apprenticeship starts within the Hospitality and Catering sector can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/649e785b-9332-4f3c-f886-08de0724494a

There are a number of apprenticeships available to support employers of all sizes in the hospitality sector to benefit from and develop the skilled workforces they need.

The government has reduced the apprenticeship minimum duration to 8 months so that shorter apprenticeships are possible from August 2025. Employers in the hospitality sector will be able to make use of this flexibility where this is appropriate for the role or the apprentice.

To support apprenticeships in small and medium-sized enterprises the government pays full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been, or are, in local authority care.

In addition, the government is delivering a hospitality Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP) pilot, launched in partnership with UKHospitality. This pilot is being rolled out to 26 new areas in need of jobs and opportunity. These SWAPs support participants to gain accreditation for a digital Hospitality Skills Passport which is designed to provide proof that a person is qualified to perform their job effectively and safely, giving them a universal entry standard into the sector.

Apprenticeship starts within the Hospitality and Catering sector can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/649e785b-9332-4f3c-f886-08de0724494a

There are a number of apprenticeships available to support employers of all sizes in the hospitality sector to benefit from and develop the skilled workforces they need.

The government has reduced the apprenticeship minimum duration to 8 months so that shorter apprenticeships are possible from August 2025. Employers in the hospitality sector will be able to make use of this flexibility where this is appropriate for the role or the apprentice.

To support apprenticeships in small and medium-sized enterprises the government pays full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been, or are, in local authority care.

In addition, the government is delivering a hospitality Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP) pilot, launched in partnership with UKHospitality. This pilot is being rolled out to 26 new areas in need of jobs and opportunity. These SWAPs support participants to gain accreditation for a digital Hospitality Skills Passport which is designed to provide proof that a person is qualified to perform their job effectively and safely, giving them a universal entry standard into the sector.

Apprenticeship starts within the Hospitality and Catering sector can be found here: https://explore-education-statistics.service.gov.uk/data-tables/permalink/649e785b-9332-4f3c-f886-08de0724494a

The Department of Work and Pensions Youth Offer provides individually tailored Work Coach support to young people aged 16 to 24 who are claiming Universal Credit. This support includes the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for young people with additional barriers to finding work, and Youth Hubs across Great Britain.

The Chancellor has announced that the Youth Guarantee, currently being developed, will include a jobs guarantee, where every eligible young person who has been on Universal Credit for 18 months without earning or learning will be offered guaranteed paid work. Participants of the scheme will receive support to take advantage of available opportunities, with the aim of helping them transition into regular employment. Further details, including eligibility criteria and the structure of placements, will be confirmed at the Budget following further engagement including with employers and the Devolved Governments.

Newcastle-Under-Lyme work with alongside local stakeholders to support young people such as local authorities, colleges and universities as well as organisations such as The Kings Trust, Shaping Futures, YMCA, and New Avenues.

Staffordshire has much of the offer of Newcastle-Under-Lyme plus working with Shropshire Youth Support Trust, Acorn Training and Landau who is part of the YES (Youth Employment Skills) programme supporting all 16 to 24-year-olds across Stoke on Trent that are Not in Education Employment or Training (NEET), about to become NEET or long term Unemployed or Economically inactive. There is also support from The Mencap Training Academy for 16 to 24-year-olds, who have an Education Health and Care Plan (EHCP) to help to secure a place on the supported internships or pre-internship programme in Staffordshire.

Ministers regularly visit job centres across the country and look forward to continuing to do so.

My Department have actively engaged with stakeholders on design for the new Crisis and Resilience Fund through a structured co-design process. This has involved a representative group of local authorities —including a mix of urban and rural areas, third-party organisations and academics. The process culminated in a concluding event on 22 October 2025, attended by over 750 stakeholders.

The Child Poverty Taskforce is progressing work to publish a Child Poverty Strategy in the autumn that will deliver measures to tackle the structural and root causes of child poverty.

The publication will set out how we intend to monitor and evaluate the impacts of the strategy from this year and in future years. Our focus is on bringing about an enduring reduction in child poverty in this parliament, as part of a 10-year Strategy for lasting change. More details will be set out in the strategy publication.

The latest statistics on the number of individuals in UK households who used a food bank in the past 30 days or 12 months are available in the Households Below Average Income publication: Households below average income: for financial years ending 1995 to 2024 - GOV.UK.

National and England regional breakdowns should be calculated using three-year rolling averages from Stat-Xplore Stat-Xplore - Home. Due to small sample sizes, it is not possible to produce estimates of food bank use at the constituency level, including for Ely and East Cambridgeshire.

We are committed to tackling poverty and reducing mass dependence on emergency food parcels. To inform this work, DWP officials have engaged with a range of organisations to better understand the complex food support landscape.

To further support struggling households, we are providing £742 million to extend the Household Support Fund (HSF) in England until 31 March 2026, enabling local authorities to continue to provide vulnerable households with immediate crisis support towards the cost of essentials, such as energy, water and food.

Starting from 1 April 2026, we have announced a further £842 million a year (£1 billion including Barnett consequential) to reform crisis support with the new Crisis and Resilience Fund, supporting our wider mission to reduce child poverty by reducing dependence on food parcels, preventing homelessness and making sure people can access urgent support when they need it.

We are expanding our network of Youth Hubs to over 200 locations across Great Britain within the next three years to provide more accessible and joined-up employment support for young people. This investment ensures that young claimants, particularly those on Universal Credit, can access tailored employment and skills services in their local communities.

While employment and skills support remain central to the Youth Hubs offer, the expansion will also ensure a core minimum blueprint across all locations. This will connect young people to a wider range of services such as health, housing, and wellbeing support, based on local needs and partnerships.

Hexham and Newcastle are already served by Youth Hubs.

In Hexham, DWP works with the Northumberland Rural Employment Hub, which recently ran a successful session for 18–24-year-olds on job searching and CV building, with plans for future events.

In Newcastle, the Newcastle United Foundation Youth Hub provides tailored employability support, including job fairs, mentoring, and access to DWP systems. It serves a wide area and works with partners to address skills and employment barriers.

These hubs will continue to evolve and align with the Youth Hub blueprint, ensuring young people benefit from high-quality, locally tailored services.

Across Northumberland and the North East, DWP is planning to expand Youth Hubs in areas of highest need over the next two years.

This Government is committed to supporting growth across the United Kingdom, including through our long-term ambition to reach an 80% employment rate.

Through our Get Britain Working Strategy, we are reforming employment, health, and skills support to tackle economic levels, support people into good work, and create an inclusive labour market based on the unique needs of local communities, in which everybody can participate and progress in work.

In Northern Ireland, health, skills, careers, and all aspects of employment support are transferred matters. Ministers and officials continue to work closely with their counterparts in the Northern Ireland Executive, with a view to maintaining parity on social security matters and sharing best practice in the development of employment support.

Statistics on the number of children living in relative poverty on a before housing costs basis for Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency are published annually in the “Children in low income families: local area statistics” publication.

An assessment of the trends in the level of child poverty in Ely and East Cambridgeshire constituency can be made using Table: “5_Relative_ParlC” in the latest published version, found here: Children in low income families: local area statistics 2014 to 2024 - GOV.UK.

The Child Poverty Taskforce is progressing work to publish our ambitious, UK-wide Child Poverty Strategy this autumn, which will deliver measures to tackle the structural and root causes of child poverty.

In addition, we are taking further steps to support children and families through our commitments to roll out free breakfast clubs in all primary schools, extend Free School Meals to every pupil whose household is in receipt of Universal Credit.

From September, eligible working parents of children aged 9 months and above can now access 30 hours a week from the term following their child turning 9 months to when they start school. This means working parents could save on average £7,500 per year, transforming the costs of having children for families.

We are expanding our network of Youth Hubs to over 200 within the next three years, including in Scotland, to provide more accessible and joined-up employment support for young people. This investment ensures that young claimants, particularly those on Universal Credit, can access tailored employment and skills services in their local communities.

While employment and skills support remain central to the Youth Hubs offer, the expansion will also ensure a core minimum blueprint across all locations. This will connect young people to a wider range of services such as health, housing, and wellbeing support, based on local needs and partnerships.

This expansion will build on the strong foundations of existing Youth Hubs operating in Scotland, which will continue to evolve and align with the Youth Hub blueprint, ensuring young people benefit from high-quality, locally tailored services

The Department of Work and Pensions Youth Offer provides individually tailored Work Coach support to young people aged 16 to 24 who are claiming Universal Credit. This support includes the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for young people with additional barriers to finding work, and Youth Hubs across Great Britain.

My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced that the Youth Guarantee, currently being developed, will include a jobs guarantee, where every eligible young person who has been on Universal Credit for 18 months without earning or learning will be offered guaranteed paid work. Participants of the scheme will receive support to take advantage of available opportunities, with the aim of helping them transition into regular employment. Further details, including eligibility criteria and the structure of placements, will be confirmed at the Budget following further engagement including with employers and the Devolved Governments.

In Hexham, there is a strong network of supportive employers who are providing work experience opportunities. This hands-on experience is invaluable for young people as they navigate their career paths.

There is also a well-established partnership with the Newcastle United Foundation (NUF) who is one of the biggest providers of training and skills in the area, running courses focused on employability, confidence building and teamwork

Young people are further encouraged to explore apprenticeship opportunities. With regular referrals to the National Careers Service for additional support and guidance, ensuring young people have access to the best advice and resources available.

In Newcastle. As well as the NUF (as detailed above) work is ongoing with other partners who are delivering training such as Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service in partnership with The Kings Trust and YMCA.

In the North East and Northumberland, Jobcentres collaborate with local authorities, colleges, and partners to support young people through targeted programmes. These include Durham Works, helping 16–24-year-olds not in education, employment or training; the Pre-Employability Sports Programme, which builds essential skills through sports and workshops; and Club Elevate, supporting 16–25-year-olds in North Tyneside who face challenges such as poor mental health, substance misuse, or risk of anti-social behaviour.

The Department of Work and Pensions Youth Offer provides individually tailored Work Coach support to young people aged 16 to 24 who are claiming Universal Credit. This support includes the Youth Employment Programme, Youth Employability Coaches for young people with additional barriers to finding work, and Youth Hubs across Great Britain.

My right hon. Friend the Chancellor of the Exchequer has announced that the Youth Guarantee, currently being developed, will include a jobs guarantee, where every eligible young person who has been on Universal Credit for 18 months without earning or learning will be offered guaranteed paid work. Participants of the scheme will receive support to take advantage of available opportunities, with the aim of helping them transition into regular employment. Further details, including eligibility criteria and the structure of placements, will be confirmed at the Budget following further engagement including with employers and the Devolved Governments.

In Hexham, there is a strong network of supportive employers who are providing work experience opportunities. This hands-on experience is invaluable for young people as they navigate their career paths.

There is also a well-established partnership with the Newcastle United Foundation (NUF) who is one of the biggest providers of training and skills in the area, running courses focused on employability, confidence building and teamwork

Young people are further encouraged to explore apprenticeship opportunities. With regular referrals to the National Careers Service for additional support and guidance, ensuring young people have access to the best advice and resources available.

In Newcastle. As well as the NUF (as detailed above) work is ongoing with other partners who are delivering training such as Tyne and Wear Fire and Rescue Service in partnership with The Kings Trust and YMCA.

In the North East and Northumberland, Jobcentres collaborate with local authorities, colleges, and partners to support young people through targeted programmes. These include Durham Works, helping 16–24-year-olds not in education, employment or training; the Pre-Employability Sports Programme, which builds essential skills through sports and workshops; and Club Elevate, supporting 16–25-year-olds in North Tyneside who face challenges such as poor mental health, substance misuse, or risk of anti-social behaviour.

The complete breakdown of PIP claims by type of mental health condition from April 2013 to July 2025 (the most recent available data) is available on Stats-Xplore (https://stat-xplore.dwp.gov.uk/webapi/jsf/login.xhtml). Guidance on how to use PIP data on Stat-Xplore is also available here: Personal Independence Payment data on Stat-Xplore: user guide - GOV.UK. An account is not required to use Stat-Xplore, the ‘Guest Login’ feature gives instant access to the main functions.

The relevant information can be found in the ‘PIP Clearances’ dataset. To customise the reporting period, use the ‘Month’ filter to select the months you wish to include.

Next, under the ‘Disability’ category, click the arrow beside ‘Psychiatric disorders’ and select ‘Disability’. This will ensure all disabilities under psychiatric disorders are included in the output.

The Department is unable to provide figures for the number of Motability Scheme users there are in Bassetlaw constituency, because only information related to PIP claimants with an active Motability Scheme contract is held centrally for analysis.

The requested information on Motability is not part of our routine statistical releases.

The requested information on Motability is not part of our routine statistical releases.

Long-term sickness continues to be the most common reason for economic inactivity among the working age population. Good work is generally good for health and wellbeing, so we want everyone to get work and get on in work, whoever they are and wherever they live. Backed by £240 million investment, the Get Britain Working White Paper launched last November will drive forward approaches to tackling economic inactivity and work toward the long-term ambition of an 80% employment rate.

Disabled people and people with health conditions are a diverse group so access to the right work and health support, in the right place, at the right time, is key. We therefore have a range of specialist initiatives to support individuals to stay in work and get back into work, including those that join up employment and health systems.

Measures include support from Work Coaches and Disability Employment Advisers in Jobcentres and Access to Work grants, as well as joining up health and employment support around the individual through Employment Advisors in NHS Talking Therapies, Individual Placement and Support in Primary Care, WorkWell and NHS Health and Growth Accelerators.

It is also recognised that employers play an important role in addressing health and disability. To build on this, the DWP and DHSC Joint Work & Health Directorate (JWHD) is facilitating “Keep Britain Working”, an independent review of the role of UK employers in reducing health-related inactivity and to promote healthy and inclusive workplaces. The lead reviewer, Sir Charlie Mayfield, is expected to bring forward recommendations in Autumn 2025.

Additionally, the JWHD has developed a digital information service for employers, continues to oversee the Disability Confident Scheme, and continues to increase access to Occupational Health.

In our March Green Paper, we set out our Pathways to Work Guarantee. We will build towards a guaranteed offer of personalised work, health and skills support for all disabled people and those with health conditions on out of work benefits.

The NHS 10 Year Health Plan, published in July, stated our intention to break down barriers to opportunity by delivering the holistic support that people need to access and thrive in employment by ensuring a better health service for everyone, regardless of condition or service area. It outlines how the neighbourhood health service will join up support from across the work, health and skills systems to help address the multiple complex challenges that often stop people finding and staying in work.

The information is not readily available and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Carer’s Allowance, paid to a family member providing care, can affect a disabled person’s own means-tested benefit award. Family members and disabled people should carefully consider what benefit support best meets their specific circumstances.

The Department is committed to ensuring that customers, including those with disabilities, are supported when moving from Employment and Support Allowance (ESA) to Universal Credit (UC). For those moved under managed migration, we provide transitional protection to their legacy benefit entitlement at the point of claiming UC.

In addition to transitional protection, customers receiving income-related ESA receive a two-week run-on of their legacy benefits to ensure the move to UC is as smooth as possible.

To support customers moving from ESA who require more support to claim the Department has developed the Enhanced Support Journey. The Enhanced Support Journey helps ESA claimants with potential barriers through proactive measures such as outbound calls, system checks, and home visits to ensure they are not left without support during migration. Key features include safeguards to prevent benefit termination before a UC claim, tailored adjustments like alternative communication channels, and national Complex Case Coaches for vulnerable claimants.

There are no plans to meet with any campaign groups.

We have already put in place the equivalent of over 1000 full-time Pathways to Work advisers across Britain to support disabled people into work.

We have also launched the Timms Review to ensure PIP is fair and fit for the future and are increasing the number of health assessments that are being conducted in person. We will be bringing forward other policy updates in due course.

The government is determined to provide carers of all ages with the recognition and support they deserve. Ministers from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the Department for Business and Trade (DBT), and the Department for Education (DfE) have convened twice this year to discuss support for unpaid carers and consider opportunities to provide further recognition and support. My Right Hon. Friend the Minister for Social Security and Disability has met with Carers Trust on several occasions, and the department will continue to work collaboratively with groups representing and supporting carers.

DWP and DfE are launching a Youth Guarantee to ensure young people aged 18-21 can access quality training opportunities, an apprenticeship, or help to find work. As part of the Youth Guarantee we are working with Mayoral Strategic Authorities (MSA) to deliver 8 Trailblazers in England which are testing different approaches to identifying, engaging, and supporting young people who are NEET or at risk of becoming NEET. MSAs have developed their approaches with consideration to young people in their locality who need more support. As we set out in the Get Britain Working White Paper our Youth Guarantee will meet the needs of those facing disadvantages, including disadvantages related to unpaid caregiving.

We cannot provide the data requested for this Parliamentary Question. Jobcentres span multiple benefit streams and business functions and therefore we do not retain telephony data specifically relating to Jobcentres.

The (a) initial new claims application process for disability benefits is either paper or telephony based. A range of alternative formats are available for paper-based correspondence and is therefore accessible to blind and visually impaired customers. Customers can also progress their claims digitally, however, customers who are blind or visually impaired would need appropriate software to do so. If not, paper-based correspondence supported with alternative formats is available.

In respect of (b) His Majesty’s Courts and Tribunals Service (HMCTS) has a legal obligation under the Equality Act 2010 to provide reasonable adjustments for users with specific accessibility needs and to give equal access to our information. Users may ask for HMCTS leaflets, blank forms, and any documents relating to their case in an alternative format. Everyone has individual needs which we would discuss to meet their requirements.

There are many different types of alternative formats. The more common types requested by users are:

• audio translation

• braille

• coloured paper

• documents sent by email in a specific format, to be viewed using assistive technology

• easy read

• font type

• large print / font size

The Department is unable to provide data related to Northern Ireland, as Personal Independence Payment is administered by the Department for Communities in the Northern Ireland Executive. The figures for Wales are provided in the table below.

Table 1: Volume of PIP claimants with an active Motability contract

Notes:

- Values have been rounded to the nearest 100.

- The figures have been provided in calendar years, containing data from January 2020 to July 2025.

- Figures include claims made under Normal Rules and Special Rules for End of Life

- Values in the table show any PIP claimant with an active Motability Scheme contract on the PIP caseload within that calendar year.

The Department for Work and Pensions pays local authorities a Housing Benefit subsidy for Temporary Accommodation cases. There are restrictions on the amount paid, including a subsidy cap which is the lowest of £500 per week in certain areas of London or £375 elsewhere, 90% of 2011 LHA rates, or the claimant’s Housing Benefit entitlement. This incentivises local authorities to ensure Temporary Accommodation is good value for money.

We recognise the financial pressures which local authorities are experiencing. This Government has invested £1bn in homelessness and rough sleeping services this year (2025/26), a £233m increase on the previous year.

We want to encourage better investment into Temporary Accommodation stock up-front to minimise costs to local authorities and £950m was announced in the latest round of the Local Authority Housing Fund. This coupled with measures to strengthen local authorities’ financial position such as a new £39 billion Affordable Homes Programme and a 10-year rental settlement at Consumer Price Index + 1, will support local authorities in England to increase the supply of good quality Temporary Accommodation and drive down the use of costly bed and breakfasts and hotels.

We continue to work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as part of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Inter Ministerial Group.

The Department for Work and Pensions pays local authorities a Housing Benefit subsidy for Temporary Accommodation cases. There are restrictions on the amount paid, including a subsidy cap which is the lowest of £500 per week in certain areas of London or £375 elsewhere, 90% of 2011 LHA rates, or the claimant’s Housing Benefit entitlement. This incentivises local authorities to ensure Temporary Accommodation is good value for money.

We recognise the financial pressures which local authorities are experiencing. This Government has invested £1bn in homelessness and rough sleeping services this year (2025/26), a £233m increase on the previous year.

We want to encourage better investment into Temporary Accommodation stock up-front to minimise costs to local authorities and £950m was announced in the latest round of the Local Authority Housing Fund. This coupled with measures to strengthen local authorities’ financial position such as a new £39 billion Affordable Homes Programme and a 10-year rental settlement at Consumer Price Index + 1, will support local authorities in England to increase the supply of good quality Temporary Accommodation and drive down the use of costly bed and breakfasts and hotels.

We continue to work with the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government as part of the Homelessness and Rough Sleeping Inter Ministerial Group.

The only active substance that is currently approved for use in biocidal products under the GB Biocidal Product Regulation (BPR) in GB, and which is not approved in the EU under EU BPR, is sulfuryl fluoride, in product types 8 and 18, CAS 2699-79-8. The entity that supported the first approval of sulfuryl fluoride is Dow AgroSciences GmbH, and the company supporting the renewal of the approval in GB is Douglas BLG BVBA.

The EU BPR continues to apply in Northern Ireland.

There are no plans to meet with any campaign groups.

Since 1 January 2021, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE), as the regulator, has acted as the Agency for the assimilated Regulation (EC) No. 1272/2008 on classification, labelling and packaging of substances and mixtures as amended in Great Britain (or the GB CLP Regulation).

HSE is responsible for the GB mandatory classification and labelling system (GB MCL) and for updating the GB MCL List on the HSE website with new/revised or deleted entries in accordance with a timetable set out in UK law. The GB MCL List entries provide information on chemical substances that have GB MCLs including: a) chemical name, (b) European Community number, (c) CAS Registry Number, (e) GB Mandatory Classification and Labelling (i) Hazard class and category code, (ii) Hazard statement code and (iii) date of entry into legal effect.

The GB MCL List does not include information on the EU harmonised classification and labelling, hazard class and category code and hazard statement code for these chemical substances. This information is available on the European Chemicals Agency website in the unofficial ‘Table of harmonised entries containing all updates to the harmonised classification and labelling of hazardous substances, available in Table 3 of Annex VI to the EU CLP Regulation’.

The GB MCL List includes 4430 entries. Since 1 January 2021, 206 chemical substances have received GB MCLs, following a recommendation by HSE as the Agency and a Ministerial Decision made with the consent of Scottish and Welsh Ministers. The GB MCL entries for the 206 entries, including the requested information, are published in the GB MCL List on the HSE website – please see https://www.hse.gov.uk/chemical-classification/classification/mcl-list.htm.