Jobcentres

HC Deb 25 April 1996 vol 276 cc227-9W

Mr. Redmond

To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Employment (1) what assessments she has made of the performance of jobcentres in(a) Doncaster and (b) Mexborough measured against charter standards in the last 12 months; [26611]

(2) how many complaints were received about the services provided by jobcentres in (a) Doncaster and (b) Mexborough during the last 12 months; and what were the equivalent figures for the previous (i) 12, (ii) 24 and (iii) 36 months. [26612]

Mr. Forth

Responsibility for the subject of the question has been delegated to the Employment Agency under its chief executive. I have asked him to arrange for a reply to be given.

Letter from Mike Fogden to Mr. Martin Redmond, dated 25 April 1996: The Secretary of State has asked me to reply to your questions about the performance of Jobcentres in Doncaster and Mexborough in the last 12 months measured against Charter standards, and about the number of complaints received about the services provided by the above Jobcentres. Jobseeker's Charter standards are monitored throughout the Employment Service. The standards are agreed by the Citizens Charter Unit and Number 10 Policy Unit. The following standards can be expected by jobseekers under the Jobseeker's Charter: jobseekers should be seen on time if they have an appointment, if not they should be seen within 10 minutes of offered an appointment; telephone calls should be answered within 30 seconds; letters should be responded to within five days, jobseekers's questions should be answered in clear, plain language; vacancies on display should be up to date and available; and benefit payments should be for the right amount of money and on time. Table 1 and 2 attached show the standards achieved for the periods you requested in the Employment Service (ES) Districts in which Doncaster and Mexborough are located. Analysis would indicate that the standards, particularly on client waiting times, are lower in the Doncaster ES District compared to Barnsley and the Dearne. The main factor affecting the service to the public during the period was the introduction of a pilot system known as the Labour Market System (LMS). LMS is a computer based system designed to support the ES frontline, job-broking and client advisory processes. As with any major innovation of this size there have been a number of system and organisational problems to resolve. I am pleased to report that the majority of teething problems have been overcome and we are now starting to see real improvements for our clients. You will be interested to note that following the successful pilot of LMS in the Doncaster ES District a decision was taken to rollout LMS in all Jobcentre locations. As part of the Jobseeker's Charter we obtain feedback from our clients on the quality of our services. A formal suggestions and complaints system is in place at Jobseekers to monitor this. Table 3 shows the volume of complaints received by Doncaster and Mexborough offices. Suggestions by clients and employers are regularly monitored and where possible improvements are made to our services. For example, improved Back To Work Teams (BTWTs) are currently being introduced into Jobcentres following the 1995 local customer satisfaction surveys. BTWTs are groups of ES people who provide the full range of ES programmes and services to specific groups of clients. The teams can offer a continuity of service to clients, as well as ensuring all eligibility conditions for receipt of benefit are satisfied. In addition to the above quarterly monitoring of standards, information is gathered via local and national customer satisfaction surveys. The last local customer satisfaction survey in Mexborough was carried out in the two weeks commencing 18 March 1995 (published July 1995). Offices within the Doncaster ES District were excluded from the 1995 survey because of the LMS pilot. You will be interested to note that a survey of customer satisfaction within the Doncaster Jobcentres took place two weeks ago although the results are yet to be published and analysed. Should you require any further information please do not hesitate to contact my District Managers. Terry Allen is District Manager for Doncaster District and he can be contacted on Tel: [phone], and Paul Armstrong is District Manager for Barnsley and the Dearne—which covers Mexborough—and can be contacted on Tel: [phone]. I hope this is helpful.

Table 1: Standards of service by Barnsley and the Dearne Employment Service District under the jobseeker's charter Barnsley and the Dearne Employment Service District comprises the Jobcentres in Barnsley, Goldthorpe, Hoyland, Mexborough and Wombwell.
Percentage
Quarter ending	Waiting times (Seen within 10 minutes)	Answering telephone (within 30 seconds)	Reply to letters (within 5 working days)	Up to date vacancies	First payment within 13 days1	Accuracy of payment by value2
March 1996	86	97.3	100	96.6	74.3	398.4
December 1995	97.1	96.9	100	95.2	82.8	498.1
September 1995	100	99	100	95	75.6	597.7
June 1995	100	98	99	96	77.3	699.4
1 This indicator is compiled monthly and the figures for the month highlighted have been given.
2 For this indicator the quarterly return dates differ.
3 5.1.96.
4 6.10.95.
5 7.7.95.
6 7.4.95.

Table 2: Standards of Service by Doncaster Employment Service District under the Jobseeker's Charter Doncaster Employment Service District comprises the East Laith Gate, Queensgate Corner, Queensgate House, and Trafford Way Jobcentres in Doncaster and Thorne Jobcentre
						Percentage
Quarter ending	Waiting times (seen within 10 minutes)	Answering telephone (with 30 seconds	Reply to letters (within 5 working days)	Up to date vacancies	First payment within 12 day1	Accuracy of payment by value2
March 1996	82	100	87.5	91.1	74.5	396.8
December 1995	80.8	100	100	89.7	77.8	498.2
September 1995	86.6	100	100	83.9	70.8	592.5
June 1995	92.6	100	85.8	82.7	70.8	697.0
1 This indicator is compiled monthly and the figures for the month highlighted have been given.
2 For this indicator the quarterly return dates differ.
3 5.1.96.
4 6.10.95.
5 7.7.95.
6 7.4.95.

Table 3: Complaints received under the jobseeker's charter
	Number of complains received by Mexborough jobcentre	Number of complains received by Doncaster jobcentres (excluding Thorne)
Year ending March 1996	7	33
Year ending March 1995	2	45
Year ending March 1994	0 (Records not available until quarter ending December 1993)	Records not available
Year ending March 19931	Records not available	Records not available
1 Under the Jobseeker's Charter, there are no national guidelines on the length of time completed documents are retained and it is at the discretion of the District Manager as to how long information are kept on file.