Towards the end of last week I was delighted to welcome the
Employment Minister, Guy Opperman, to visit Newquay Jobcentre and local
Community Interest Company Newquay Community Orchard.
The civil servants who work in the Department for Work and
Pensions and specifically Jobcentre Plus are often unheralded but in reality
contribute a vast amount of knowledge and experience, both in helping people
into or back into work through targeted support, but also in ensuring local
businesses are equally supported in being able to access the employees that
they need to be successful.
In our St Austell and Newquay constituency we not only have
two excellent examples of Jobcentre Plus offices, in St Austell and Newquay
towns respectively, but also the St Austell Service Centre, which supports
Universal Credit customers across the whole of the south of England, right up
to London!
The Government regularly releases employment figures and did
so last week, for March 2023. These figures showed that in St Austell and
Newquay, while there were 270 less people claiming Unemployment Benefits in March 2023 compared to in March 2022.
Many local businesses have vacancies for jobs. During the
Minister’s visit on Thursday it was heartening to see first-hand just some of
the positive work that is being done locally to address this.
The teams working in St Austell and Newquay jobcentres
really do so much more than what you might traditionally expect. They work with
employers to provide bespoke services to ensure vacancies get the best results,
while also providing practical and positive assistance to people on Universal
Credit to give them skills and tools necessary to be ready for employment.
In particular at the moment they are working to support
people with disabilities and older people back into the work place via a number
of innovative schemes.
These ways of working, often with local excellent
organisations such as Newquay Community Orchard, deserve to be highlighted and
shared as examples of best practice nationwide. That is why it was great to
welcome the Employment Minister to the constituency to show him just a few
examples of this positive work in action, which I know he has taken away to
show how Mid-Cornwall is leading the way in this field.
There is always more to do to ensure our employment market
is protected and grown, and I will continue to work with our local Department
for Work and Pensions teams, community groups like Newquay Community Orchard,
and employers across our constituency to make sure everyone gets the support
they need to thrive and prosper.
As ever, if I can be of assistance on any matter, my office
is available for any constituents needing help, advice or guidance – tel: 01726
829379 or email: office@stevedouble.org.uk
