§ 53. Mr. Bruceasked the Secretary of State for Social Services if he intends to increase staffing levels in his Department's offices.
§ Mr. NewtonThe Departmental local office complementing system—a guide to which is in the Library—provides for the determination of local office complements, that is the number of staff required to cope with the estimated continuing workload, and their adjustment as workload levels change. The annual exercise to determine the complement for the 12 months from April 1984 is about to start and is expected to increase the complement. The number of staff actually in post should always be higher than the complement, primarily to ensure that the complement consists of fully-trained staff. At present the number of staff in post is substantially higher than the 1983–84 complement or the expected complement for 1984–85, because of the need to deal with the supplementary benefit changes coming into force next month. It will however decline over the next few months.