Temporary job centre opens in Sheffield over Covid unemployment fears

The new site on Tenter Street officially opened its doors to the public, with ministers saying it will give more access to support and new opportunities to find work.

It has recruited 80 staff, some new to the DWP as part of a recruitment drive. The existing permanent Jobcentres remains open.

Each ‘work coach’ will provide one-on-one support to help people find jobs.

The national unemployment rate for January to March, when most of the Covid restrictions were still in place - was 4.8 per cent, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Economists expect unemployment to rise when Government support schemes - such as furlough - come to an end.

The Bank of England expects the unemployment rate to reach around 5.5 per cent in the autumn.

Employment minister Mims Davies MP, minister for employment said: “We know this has been a challenging time for many people and that’s why we’re boosting our DWP Jobcentre support in every corner of the UK, including here in Sheffield

“Every customer benefits from a dedicated work coach. They know the local jobs market and work with local businesses to match jobseekers to the latest nearby opportunities.

“It’s brilliant to see our Plan for Jobs in action, from Kickstart to sector based work academy programmes, our work coaches are there to help people to get thriving and be ready to progress.”

The additional space will accommodate new staff recruited in Sheffield to try to help people into jobs.

Karen Church is in charge of the new site in Sheffield. She has a career at DWP spanning 40 years.

She said: “I am really excited to be part of the team that has helped bring everything together to open the new office in Tenter Street. This fantastic opportunity will allow us to support more of our customers face to face, in a safe environment.

“The staff working at Tenter Street will be a mixture of experienced Work Coaches, working alongside newer colleagues to give our customers the support they need to move into work and allow us to contribute to the economic recovery of Sheffield.”