TODAY, as part of the Plan for Jobs, the new temporary Jobcentre in Lewisham Town Hall, Catford officially opened its doors, giving jobseekers more access to support and the latest opportunities.
The Lewisham Town Hall Jobcentre Pus will welcome customers of all ages as well as supporting those who are self-employed. The significantly larger site will allow collaboration with more employers and key stakeholders in one location, providing a wrap-around service tailoring suitable support to each customer.
Work Coaches at the new site in Lewisham Town Hall will join thousands of colleagues up and down the country at the forefront of the Government’s drive to get 500,000 people currently out of work into jobs by the end of June as part of the ‘Way to Work’ campaign.
The Jobcentre has 36 Work Coaches, some of whom joined the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) as part of the successful recruitment drive to hire 13,500 new Work Coaches across the country.
Each new Work Coach will help local people looking for work in Lewisham and neighbouring boroughs with one-on-one tailored support to find their next role.
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 community of the UK, including here in Lewisham.
“Every customer benefit from having a dedicated Work Coach. They know the local jobs market and work with local businesses to match jobseekers to the latest 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 thrive and progress in work.”
Lewisham Town Hall Jobcentre Plus is one of the new temporary sites announced by DWP earlier this year, building on the existing 639 Jobcentres across the UK.
The additional space will accommodate new Work Coaches recruited in Lewisham Town Hall, helping more people to transform their lives through tailored employment support.
Donna Jones is one of those new recruits based at Lewisham Town Hall Jobcentre Plus.
DWP Work Coach Donna Jones said:
“I love helping others and being a Work Coach has been a great opportunity to help people within my local community get back into work and training. It’s been a pleasure to have played an instrumental part in the Kickstart Scheme by getting our young people into work and supporting them along the way. Being able to make a difference in these young people’s lives has been such a privilege that I will never forget. I have learnt so much from their resilience of not letting even a global pandemic stop them from reaching their goals.”
Dinesh Arjal is the Customer Service Leader overseeing the new site, bringing with him 6 years of leadership experience within DWP.
Customer Service Leader Dinesh Arjal said:
“The restrictions that covid has posed have made it harder for our community to get into and sustain employment.
“This new site in the London Borough of Lewisham will allow us to engage with our community and its workforce, which will open more opportunities to progress into employment.
“Having grown up in the borough, I feel privileged to lead a site that will genuinely help our citizens into progressive employment that will contribute to our country’s overall economy.”
Anne-Marie Douglas MBE is the Lewisham Borough Partnership Manager.
Lewisham Borough Partnership Manager Anne-Marie Douglas MBE said:
“As the Borough Partnership Manager for Lewisham and a civil servant for the last 21 years with Lewisham, I am immensely proud as this is a milestone moment for the Borough of Lewisham as we open the new jobcentre site in Catford town centre. The new Jobcentre will be in the heart of the community. This will be a launchpad of employment opportunities in a diversity community which has been impacted by covid.”
