Small employers in England have a useful careers-support route to share with staff and prospective recruits as advisers move into the Department for Work and Pensions. The change brings careers guidance closer to Jobcentre employment support, with online information and telephone advice available now and face-to-face appointments due later in October.
For an owner juggling recruitment and staff development, the immediate task is straightforward: update the contact details you share, understand who the service supports, and use the separate employer service when you need help filling a vacancy.
What has changed this October?
In its 6 October announcement, DWP says around 500 qualified careers advisers have joined the department as the National Careers Service is merged into it. They will work alongside employment and skills support, as the government develops its wider Jobs and Careers Service.
The service’s own transition notice dates the transfer and website changes to 1 October. The existing website is now called Get careers information and advice, with its address and existing links retained. People can still explore different occupations, assess their skills and look for courses through its digital tools.
DWP says people can use careers support regardless of whether they claim benefits. Its announcement gives a more specific timetable for appointments: face-to-face sessions at Jobcentres will be available later this month. Anyone needing an appointment should check availability rather than assume a local adviser can see them today.
Who can use the advice?
The current access guidance says people aged 18 or over who live in England can contact a DWP careers adviser. The telephone number is 0800 072 0288, with lines open Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, excluding bank holidays.
There are different routes for younger people. Under-18s who are in school, college or training should approach their provider’s careers adviser. Young people outside education, employment and training can contact DWP for advice. Employers supporting a young apprentice should therefore keep their training provider involved.
The announcement also says qualified advisers will focus in-depth guidance on people facing greater barriers to work or learning, including disabled people and young people outside education, employment or training. This particular reorganisation concerns England; businesses elsewhere in the UK should use their nation’s careers service.
How it could help a small team
A business with five or ten staff may have no dedicated person to discuss career options or training. Sharing the service’s current information gives an employee somewhere to explore a possible next step before agreeing a development plan with their manager.
For example, someone considering a move from shop-floor work into administration could use the careers website to investigate the role and relevant courses. The employer can then discuss the actual tasks, working hours and training time available in the business. Advice helps inform that conversation; the business still needs to decide what it can support.
Before creating a new role, it is also sensible to compare recruitment with developing an existing employee. Our earlier guide to planning a small-business hire covers the full employment cost and the need to define the capability you are trying to add.
Use the employer route for vacancies
Jobcentre Plus already offers separate recruitment advice to businesses. Its employer guidance describes help with job descriptions, promoting vacancies, candidate matching and local recruitment events. Interview space may be available at some offices.
Employers can contact the Employer Services Line on 0800 169 0178, Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm, or use the enquiry form linked from that guidance. A local recruitment consultant will call back to discuss the business’s needs. This is the established employer service, alongside the careers changes announced today.
For your next conversation, prepare the pay, hours, location, essential skills and training you can offer. Ask which local support is available and agree the next step. A clearer vacancy brief gives both advisers and applicants a better chance of understanding the opportunity.
