A TEMPORARY job centre has opened in Darlington.

The Jobcentre Plus is located in The Beehive at Lingfield Point and aims to provide support for people of all ages, including specialist support for self-employed customers. 

There are 16 work coaches bases at the centre who will be helping people to find a job.

Read more: Free HGV training available in Darlington 

The Department for Work and Pensions announced it was opening a series of temporary job centres earlier this year as part of its response to the pandemic.

Minister for employment Mims Davies 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 Darlington.

“Every customer benefits 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.”

Lingfield Point Darlington Jobcentre is one of the new temporary sites announced by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) earlier this year, building on the existing 639 Jobcentres across the UK.

Work coach Louise Coates is one of the new recruits based at Lingfield Point Jobcentre.

She said: “The opening of Lingfield Jobcentre is a great opportunity for myself and colleagues to support claimants into work.

"I am looking forward to supporting even more claimants in a Covid-secure environment.

"The location of the new office will open the Jobcentre up to a wide variety of claimants due to its accessibility and ease of access which will greatly help some of our customers who need more support.”

David Pugh, customer service leader at the centre, said: “I am really excited and pleased to be opening a new site in the Darlington area which will allow DWP to provide increased support to our Darlington community.”

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