 Welcome to latest edition of Employer and Partnership News 04 March 2026. If you would like to unsubscribe, please let me know. Here are some of the updated headlines from this fortnight’s edition: Jobcentre Employer Guide Employment Offer – attached for Accrington & Blackburn Requests/For Action
DWP Business Updates
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New Rules for Attendance Allowance and Disability Living Allowance Customers Moving to Scotland Following the completion of Attendance Allowance (AA) and Disability Living Allowance (DLA) case transfers to Social Security Scotland, new rules apply from 23 February 2026. AA customers who move permanently from England or Wales to Scotland now need to make a new claim to the Scottish benefit, Pension Age Disability Payment (PADP). DLA customers who move permanently from England or Wales to Scotland now need to contact Social Security Scotland to discuss entitlement to Scottish Adult Disability Living Allowance (SADLA). Before 23 February 2026, customers getting AA and DLA who permanently moved from England or Wales to Scotland had their cases automatically transferred to Social Security Scotland, who paid PADP or SADLA. Find out more about moving to Scotland at www.mygov.scot/moving-to-scotland(link is external). Mobile Jobcentres: Taking Employment Support Into Communities(link is external) The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is expanding its Mobile Jobcentres, also known as Jobcentres on Wheels, to bring employment support directly into local communities. The initiative aims to remove barriers that prevent people from seeking help by placing mobile vans in everyday locations such as supermarkets, leisure centres, family hubs and football stadiums. This approach is designed to meet people where they are, offering access to support for jobseekers, those with health conditions or disabilities, parents needing childcare guidance, and individuals who may not typically engage with traditional Jobcentre settings. The vans are staffed by experienced Work Coaches who provide expert guidance on job searching, training and skills development. The service follows highly successful pilot schemes in the Scottish Highlands, North and Mid Wales, and Greater Manchester, where over 1,600 people received support. These early results showed that more than half of visitors were not in receipt of benefits, demonstrating the vans’ ability to reach economically inactive people who may otherwise be missed. In response to this success, the fleet is now expanding into six new areas across England and Wales: Wakefield, North Nottinghamshire, Barrow‑in‑Furness, Blackpool, Clevedon and Rhondda Cynon Taf/Bridgend. These locations were chosen due to high unemployment or inactivity rates, ensuring support reaches communities where it is most needed. Earlier deployments, such as the Bolton Mobile Jobcentre, have already helped hundreds of people—including many who had never visited a Jobcentre before—further demonstrating the effectiveness of bringing support into trusted community spaces. Mobile Jobcentres form a core part of the government’s wider Get Britain Working and Plan for Change programmes, which aim to boost economic participation and ensure more people across the country can access meaningful employment opportunities. First Youth Guarantee jobs fair brings big employers together to unlock opportunities for young people(link is external) Press release: Thousands of young people were brought together with employers for the first ever jobs fair for the Youth Guarantee – the government’s scheme to help ensure young people are either earning or learning. Hosted at Blackpool Winter Gardens, the event connected more than 3,000 local residents with 94 employers across a range of sectors – from Blackpool Pleasure Beach and Haven Holidays to Northern Rail and the Royal Air Force. Employers offered apprenticeships, traineeships, work experience placements and job opportunities across a wide range of sectors, with some employers offering on the day interviews and immediate start roles. The government will deliver at least one Youth Guarantee Jobs Fair in every region of England, Scotland and Wales – ensuring young people can access opportunities on their doorstep. Disability Confident service providers(link is external) This document within the link(link is external) gives the contact details of service providers who may be able to help businesses become Disability Confident employers. New Crisis and Resilience Fund (01 April 2026 to 31 March 2029)(link is external) Guidance: From 01 April 2026, the new Crisis and Resilience Fund will be launched in England. The Crisis and Resilience Fund provides grant funding to local authorities in England to provide preventative support to communities, as well as assisting people when faced with a financial crisis. The Crisis and Resilience Fund’s guidance provides detailed information to support local authorities design their schemes. Funding for the Crisis and Resilience Fund covers the period starting 01 April 2026 and ending 31 March 2029. Provisional Allocations(link is external) and draft grant conditions(link is external) for the fund have already been published, and will be finalised in due course. Spring Forecast 2026: The right economic plan for Britain(link is external) The Chancellor of the Exchequer Rachel Reeves announced her Spring Forecast 2026 in Parliament on Tuesday 03 March 2026. The Spring Forecast has shown that the government’s economic plan to cut the cost of living, cut national debt and grow the economy, is the right one. The Chancellor set out how this government is building a stronger and more secure economy that makes every part of Britain better off. Through stability in the public finances, investment in infrastructure and reform to the economy, this government’s economic plan is changing Britain for the better. Independent report: This is the Office for Budget Responsibility’s March 2026 Economic and fiscal outlook(link is external). Speech: Spring Forecast 2026 speech(link is external). Landmark deal paves way for return of regular cross-Channel rail freight(link is external) Press release: Regular rail freight traffic through the Channel Tunnel will help reduce pollution, potholes and congestion while providing new jobs across the UK. Government launches investment in support for kinship carers(link is external) Press release: £126 million of support confirmed for family members such as grandparents, aunts and uncles who care for relatives’ children in new pilot scheme. Currently, kinship carers do not receive consistent financial support, unlike foster carers. This is despite the fact that kinship care is shown to lead to better outcomes the residential care homes, with a 2021 report by University College London(link is external) showing lower rates of long term illness and higher rates of employment for adults with a history of kinship care compared to those that grew up in foster or residential care The government is now trialling a financial allowance to eligible kinship carers, backed by £126 million to reach around 5,000 children, recognising the vital role carers play in the lives of their vulnerable children. This starts with a pilot in the seven local authority area Kinship Zones announced today, with kinship carers to be provided with funding per child, equivalent to what foster carers receive(link is external). Passengers save millions as rail fare freeze starts(link is external) Press release: Government freezes rail fares, saving passengers £600 million and easing cost‑of‑living pressures as it rebuilds a better, more reliable railway.
Energy bills coming down thanks to government action, as Prime Minister vows to bear down on cost of living(link is external) Press release: Households across Britain will benefit from cheaper energy bills this spring, thanks to actions taken by the government – putting money in working people’s pockets in a major step forward in tackling the cost of living.
Billion-pound helicopter deal secures 3,300 British jobs, boosts battlefield kit and unlocks up to £15 billion in UK exports(link is external) Press release: Thousands of skilled British jobs have been secured with a major helicopter deal that will boost the UK Armed Forces’ battlefield kit and makes Britain Leonardo’s global centre for military helicopter production and exports – worth a potential £15 billion over the next decade. The £1 billion deal will also make Yeovil the centre of excellence for military helicopter autonomy, as the Ministry of Defence invests further in Proteus - the UK’s first autonomous uncrewed air system which is built by Leonardo and recently undertook its first flight. The development of uncrewed and autonomous technology in the UK is at the heart of the government’s Defence Industrial Strategy and could offer the opportunity to make platforms such as NMH optionally-crewed. Wales becomes UK launchpad for next generation autonomous technology(link is external) Press release: Welsh communities will benefit from high-skilled roles as a landmark £50 million Defence Growth Deal boosts autonomous technology. It is the latest example of the Welsh and UK Governments putting Wales on the front foot, supporting Welsh jobs and getting Britain building again. Earlier this week, both governments announced that seven new railway stations are set to be built across Wales, creating thousands of jobs across the country, boosting the construction industry and driving real change that communities will see. 4,500 new homes and jobs in Lincolnshire thanks to new government-backed road(link is external) Press release: The £110 million investment in the North Hykeham Relief Road will also mean faster journeys and less congestion for people across Lincoln and Lincolnshire. Tens of thousands of people across Lincoln and Lincolnshire are set to benefit from faster journeys, after the government confirmed funding for the North Hykeham Relief Road. Work will begin just next month with the brand-new dual carriageway between the A46 and A15, backed by over £110 million in government funding, supporting the delivery of 4,500 homes around Lincoln. The link road will open up new job opportunities through improved connections into Lincoln, reduce congestion in surrounding villages and improve road safety. Funding boost to support patients to stay in and return to work(link is external) Press release: Patients will receive better support to help them stay in and get back to work, thanks to a £25 million funding boost for a pilot scheme in areas of high economic inactivity. Health and Growth Accelerators bring together work and health support for people with health conditions, aiming to stop health problems becoming work problems. The pilots in the north of England target the most common conditions that are experienced by people who are economically inactive because of poor health, such as:
Over £50 million pumped into the fight to tackle homelessness(link is external) Press release: Two new funds to tackle homelessness head-on and help deliver on the national target to halve long‑term rough sleeping by the end of this Parliament. Councils and organisations helping tackle homelessness and rough sleeping will receive £50 million worth of government investment, targeting the people and places under the most pressure. £271 million to clean up shipping and power coastal communities(link is external) Press release: This funding will boost skilled jobs and coastal economies, and forms part of a £448 million commitment to clean maritime funding.
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