Citizens Advice responds to the Get Britain Working White Paper

Responding to the Get Britain Working White Paper, Tom MacInnes, Director of Policy at Citizens Advice, said: 

“We know the current system to help people into work isn’t working. Jobcentres and work coaches are overwhelmed with demand and simply focus on administering benefits, leaving little time to meaningfully support jobseekers. 

“Reforms are desperately needed to create a system which empowers people to find and stay in work, not push them away.

“The government must recognise that fostering supportive relationships between jobseekers and work coaches, rather than focussing on compliance and benefit sanctions, is the most effective way of getting people into work.”

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Notes to editors:

  1. Citizens Advice is made up of the national charity Citizens Advice; the network of independent local Citizens Advice charities across England and Wales; the Citizens Advice consumer service; and the Witness Service.

  2. Our network of charities offers impartial advice online, over the phone, and in person, for free. 

  3. Citizens Advice helped 2.68 million people face to face, over the phone, by email and webchat in 2023-24. And we had 51.7 million visits to our website. For full service statistics see our monthly publication Advice trends.

  4. Citizens Advice service staff are supported by more than 19,000 trained volunteers, working at over 1,900 service outlets across England and Wales.

  5. Citizens Advice is the statutory consumer advocate for energy and postal markets. We provide supplier performance information to consumers and policy analysis to decision makers. 

  6. You can get consumer advice from the Citizens Advice consumer service on 0808 223 1133 or 0808 223 1144 for Welsh language speakers.