Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, how the 4.7% claimant rate in Leicester East compares with average claimant rates across the wider East Midlands region; and what specific regional economic strategy is being implemented to bring Leicester East’s figure in line with both regional and national averages.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions offers a range of employment support. This includes the ‘Find a Job’ website, financial support through the Flexible Support Fund to help with interviews or starting work, and tailored, flexible support through Jobcentre Plus. Alongside targeted job-search support, Work Coaches offer personalised advice to help individuals secure roles which reflect their skills, qualifications and prior experience.
Where appropriate, Work Coaches identify skill gaps and signpost jobseekers to relevant training and provision, such as Skills Bootcamps, apprenticeships, sector-based work academy programmes, and free courses for jobs, as well as essential English, maths and digital skills.
For those who have been on Universal Credit for 6 months or more, the Restart Scheme provides 12 months of more intensive support, including bespoke action plans.
Possible factors contributing to unemployment in Leicester East include:
Additional support in Leicester East includes:
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of the factors contributing to the year-on-year reduction of 355 benefit claimants in Leicester East between July 2025 and July 2026; and what steps are being taken to sustain this downward trend in overall claimant numbers across the constituency.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions offers a range of employment support. This includes the ‘Find a Job’ website, financial support through the Flexible Support Fund to help with interviews or starting work, and tailored, flexible support through Jobcentre Plus. Alongside targeted job-search support, Work Coaches offer personalised advice to help individuals secure roles which reflect their skills, qualifications and prior experience.
Where appropriate, Work Coaches identify skill gaps and signpost jobseekers to relevant training and provision, such as Skills Bootcamps, apprenticeships, sector-based work academy programmes, and free courses for jobs, as well as essential English, maths and digital skills.
For those who have been on Universal Credit for 6 months or more, the Restart Scheme provides 12 months of more intensive support, including bespoke action plans.
Possible factors contributing to unemployment in Leicester East include:
Additional support in Leicester East includes:
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment the department has made of the causes of the higher unemployment-related benefit claimant rate in Leicester East compared to the national UK average; and what targeted support is being provided to reduce this disparity.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department for Work and Pensions offers a range of employment support. This includes the ‘Find a Job’ website, financial support through the Flexible Support Fund to help with interviews or starting work, and tailored, flexible support through Jobcentre Plus. Alongside targeted job-search support, Work Coaches offer personalised advice to help individuals secure roles which reflect their skills, qualifications and prior experience.
Where appropriate, Work Coaches identify skill gaps and signpost jobseekers to relevant training and provision, such as Skills Bootcamps, apprenticeships, sector-based work academy programmes, and free courses for jobs, as well as essential English, maths and digital skills.
For those who have been on Universal Credit for 6 months or more, the Restart Scheme provides 12 months of more intensive support, including bespoke action plans.
Possible factors contributing to unemployment in Leicester East include:
Additional support in Leicester East includes:
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment his Department has made of whether competency-based interview formats disadvantage disabled job seekers.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
DWP recognises that some disabled candidates may benefit from reasonable adjustments during recruitment and as such promotes practices that support fair and accessible recruitment, including the provision of interview questions in advance, the use of clear language and flexibility in assessment methods where appropriate. DWP's Learning Disabilities Project is also working with employers and specialist organisations to identify barriers to recruitment and develop practical guidance that supports more inclusive employment opportunities for people with learning disabilities.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, whether his Department plans to allocate additional work coaches or specialised advisory staff to Jobcentre Plus locations serving Leicester East to address the higher than average local claimant rate.
Answered by Andrew Western - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The Department keeps Jobcentre staffing requirements under regular review. Resource demand is regularly assessed using a range of operational measures, including claimant volumes and caseloads, and recruitment plans are reviewed accordingly.
The Department does not use parliamentary constituency boundaries as the basis for workforce planning. Recruitment decisions are made according to operational demand and service requirements across Jobcentres. This includes Jobcentre Plus offices serving the Leicester area, where staffing levels and workforce requirements will continue to be monitored and reviewed to ensure customers receive the support they need.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what analysis his Department has conducted on the underlying causes behind the month-on-month increase of 15 youth claimants aged 18 to 24 in Leicester East between June and July 2026; and what immediate support is available to prevent short-term youth unemployment from converting into long-term economic inactivity.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy, supporting almost one million young people and creating up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. It will also help unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities, through a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for non-levy employers hiring 16–24-year-olds and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
Between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026, Jobcentre Plus sites in Leicester East and across Leicestershire have delivered the previous DWP Youth Offer which provided tailored work coach support to 16- to 24-year-olds on UC in Great Britain. The Youth Guarantee has been rolled out across all Jobcentres since Q1 2026 and we are ensuring a clear pathway into the new Youth Guarantee by reforming the existing DWP Youth Offer, ensuring all young people can access support. This includes increasing work coach time with young people, to provide more personalised employment support and improving connections to national provision, and opportunities to earn or learn.
Young people now receive tailored guidance and offered up to six options (such as: work, work experience, Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP), apprenticeship, training or learning) to help them progress into employment. This support includes access to specialist work coaches – Youth Employability Coaches - to help address complex barriers to work and the partnership led Youth Hub network.
There are currently 3 Youth Employability Coaches in Leicester City and 5 in Leicestershire. This number is constantly reviewed as numbers of customers requiring the extra support offered by Youth Employability Coaches change.
Work Experience is widely offered across both the City and County with a wide range of employers across a number of sectors offering opportunities.
The Youth Hubs expansion will increase coverage to more than 360 locations across Great Britain, combining employment help from Jobcentre work coaches with local services for health, housing, and wellbeing. Currently, in Leicester, there is a Youth Hub at Leicester City Youth Hub - King Power Stadium, which is in the Leicester West constituency but can be accessible for constituents in Leicester East within an hour.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his department is taking to tackle youth unemployment in Leicester East, in the context of Office for National Statistics data for July 2026 showing 645 claimants aged 18 to 24 and zero net change (0) on the year; and what specific initiatives are in place to address stagnation in youth claimant counts across the constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy, supporting almost one million young people and creating up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. It will also help unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities, through a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for non-levy employers hiring 16–24-year-olds and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
Between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026, Jobcentre Plus sites in Leicester East and across Leicestershire have delivered the previous DWP Youth Offer which provided tailored work coach support to 16- to 24-year-olds on UC in Great Britain. The Youth Guarantee has been rolled out across all Jobcentres since Q1 2026 and we are ensuring a clear pathway into the new Youth Guarantee by reforming the existing DWP Youth Offer, ensuring all young people can access support. This includes increasing work coach time with young people, to provide more personalised employment support and improving connections to national provision, and opportunities to earn or learn.
Young people now receive tailored guidance and offered up to six options (such as: work, work experience, Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP), apprenticeship, training or learning) to help them progress into employment. This support includes access to specialist work coaches – Youth Employability Coaches - to help address complex barriers to work and the partnership led Youth Hub network.
There are currently 3 Youth Employability Coaches in Leicester City and 5 in Leicestershire. This number is constantly reviewed as numbers of customers requiring the extra support offered by Youth Employability Coaches change.
Work Experience is widely offered across both the City and County with a wide range of employers across a number of sectors offering opportunities.
The Youth Hubs expansion will increase coverage to more than 360 locations across Great Britain, combining employment help from Jobcentre work coaches with local services for health, housing, and wellbeing. Currently, in Leicester, there is a Youth Hub at Leicester City Youth Hub - King Power Stadium, which is in the Leicester West constituency but can be accessible for constituents in Leicester East within an hour.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what specific training, apprenticeship or work-placement schemes are being targeted at the 645 young people aged 18 to 24 claiming unemployment benefits in Leicester East as of July 2026; and what measures are in place to track the long-term outcomes of these interventions.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy, supporting almost one million young people and creating up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. It will also help unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities, through a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for non-levy employers hiring 16–24-year-olds and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
Between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026, Jobcentre Plus sites in Leicester East and across Leicestershire have delivered the previous DWP Youth Offer which provided tailored work coach support to 16- to 24-year-olds on UC in Great Britain. The Youth Guarantee has been rolled out across all Jobcentres since Q1 2026 and we are ensuring a clear pathway into the new Youth Guarantee by reforming the existing DWP Youth Offer, ensuring all young people can access support. This includes increasing work coach time with young people, to provide more personalised employment support and improving connections to national provision, and opportunities to earn or learn.
Young people now receive tailored guidance and offered up to six options (such as: work, work experience, Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP), apprenticeship, training or learning) to help them progress into employment. This support includes access to specialist work coaches – Youth Employability Coaches - to help address complex barriers to work and the partnership led Youth Hub network.
There are currently 3 Youth Employability Coaches in Leicester City and 5 in Leicestershire. This number is constantly reviewed as numbers of customers requiring the extra support offered by Youth Employability Coaches change.
Work Experience is widely offered across both the City and County with a wide range of employers across a number of sectors offering opportunities.
The Youth Hubs expansion will increase coverage to more than 360 locations across Great Britain, combining employment help from Jobcentre work coaches with local services for health, housing, and wellbeing. Currently, in Leicester, there is a Youth Hub at Leicester City Youth Hub - King Power Stadium, which is in the Leicester West constituency but can be accessible for constituents in Leicester East within an hour.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what directives have been given to Jobcentre Plus sites in (a) Leicester East and (b) Leicestershire to address in NEETs between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026; and how many dedicated Youth Employability Coaches are operating in the constituency.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy, supporting almost one million young people and creating up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. It will also help unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities, through a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for non-levy employers hiring 16–24-year-olds and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
Between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026, Jobcentre Plus sites in Leicester East and across Leicestershire have delivered the previous DWP Youth Offer which provided tailored work coach support to 16- to 24-year-olds on UC in Great Britain. The Youth Guarantee has been rolled out across all Jobcentres since Q1 2026 and we are ensuring a clear pathway into the new Youth Guarantee by reforming the existing DWP Youth Offer, ensuring all young people can access support. This includes increasing work coach time with young people, to provide more personalised employment support and improving connections to national provision, and opportunities to earn or learn.
Young people now receive tailored guidance and offered up to six options (such as: work, work experience, Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP), apprenticeship, training or learning) to help them progress into employment. This support includes access to specialist work coaches – Youth Employability Coaches - to help address complex barriers to work and the partnership led Youth Hub network.
There are currently 3 Youth Employability Coaches in Leicester City and 5 in Leicestershire. This number is constantly reviewed as numbers of customers requiring the extra support offered by Youth Employability Coaches change.
Work Experience is widely offered across both the City and County with a wide range of employers across a number of sectors offering opportunities.
The Youth Hubs expansion will increase coverage to more than 360 locations across Great Britain, combining employment help from Jobcentre work coaches with local services for health, housing, and wellbeing. Currently, in Leicester, there is a Youth Hub at Leicester City Youth Hub - King Power Stadium, which is in the Leicester West constituency but can be accessible for constituents in Leicester East within an hour.
Asked by: Shivani Raja (Conservative - Leicester East)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to help ensure that work experience opportunities leading to employment or paid apprenticeships for participants in Leicester East.
Answered by Lilian Greenwood - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is investing an additional £2.5 billion by 2029 into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy, supporting almost one million young people and creating up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn. This investment will also create around 300,000 more opportunities to gain workplace experience and training. It will also help unlock up to 200,000 more employment opportunities, through a new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant for employers hiring 18–24-year-olds who have been on Universal Credit for over six months, a new £2,000 apprenticeship hiring payment for non-levy employers hiring 16–24-year-olds and the Jobs Guarantee scheme, providing long-term unemployed 18–24-year-olds with a fully funded six month job.
Between Q2 2024 and Q1 2026, Jobcentre Plus sites in Leicester East and across Leicestershire have delivered the previous DWP Youth Offer which provided tailored work coach support to 16- to 24-year-olds on UC in Great Britain. The Youth Guarantee has been rolled out across all Jobcentres since Q1 2026 and we are ensuring a clear pathway into the new Youth Guarantee by reforming the existing DWP Youth Offer, ensuring all young people can access support. This includes increasing work coach time with young people, to provide more personalised employment support and improving connections to national provision, and opportunities to earn or learn.
Young people now receive tailored guidance and offered up to six options (such as: work, work experience, Sector-based Work Academy Programme (SWAP), apprenticeship, training or learning) to help them progress into employment. This support includes access to specialist work coaches – Youth Employability Coaches - to help address complex barriers to work and the partnership led Youth Hub network.
There are currently 3 Youth Employability Coaches in Leicester City and 5 in Leicestershire. This number is constantly reviewed as numbers of customers requiring the extra support offered by Youth Employability Coaches change.
Work Experience is widely offered across both the City and County with a wide range of employers across a number of sectors offering opportunities.
The Youth Hubs expansion will increase coverage to more than 360 locations across Great Britain, combining employment help from Jobcentre work coaches with local services for health, housing, and wellbeing. Currently, in Leicester, there is a Youth Hub at Leicester City Youth Hub - King Power Stadium, which is in the Leicester West constituency but can be accessible for constituents in Leicester East within an hour.