A new office that will serve as a base for more than 3,000 Department for Work and Pensions staff has officially opened in Blackpool, amid reports that Spending Review allocations will depend on departments having a plan in place to move more civil servants out of London.
Staff will transfer to the seven-storey building from Warbreck House and Ryscar House, both north of the town.
Work on the Blackpool Hub and Centre for Health and Disability Assessment, which forms part of the £350m Talbot Gateway regeneration of the town centre, began last year and was due to be completed last autumn.
Transformation minister Andrew Western opened the £100m building on King Street last week, plans for which were announced in 2021.
"We've got capacity for all 3,000 to be in full-time if they want, but we know that one of the big things that people look at in the jobs market is flexibility, so I think there's an opportunity for both here," he said.
"It's an absolutely fantastic building and it's what I want to see more of across the DWP estate in the future.”
Western also used the opportunity – which follows the announcement that DWP staff across all grades will be expected to spend 60% of their working hours in the office – to say that the government encourages people to work on site "to collaborate and learn best practice".
"The policy for much of government is that people need to be in at least three days a week," he said.
"We want to give people flexibility where we can, but 60% is the minimum expectation," he said.
The office building was the site of a fire last year, with five fire engines called to respond. However, it caused "no significant damage", a spokesperson said at the time.
Push to have 'more civil servants working closer to frontline services'
The announcement comes amid reports that government departments are being told to set out plans to move thousands of staff out of London as part of their bids to secure funding from the Treasury at next month’s Spending Review.
Whitehall departments will be required to set out plans to move thousands of staff out of London as part of their bids to secure funding from the Treasury at the spending review.
Plans will build on the Places for Growth programme, announced in 2020 by then-chancellor Rishi Sunak, to move 22,000 officials out of the capital by 2030 as part of the Conservative government’s levelling up agenda.
Last year, the Cabinet Office reported that departments were on track to exceed the target, with 18,000 roles moved as of March 2024.
Cabinet Office minister Pat McFadden will write to all Whitehall departments to tell them their funding allocation in June will be contingent on submitting their plans, according to the Guardian.
“We’re keen to go further to enhance the impact of government in places across the country, so that the civil service has an active presence in communities across the UK and contributes to local growth and job creation,” a government source told the newspaper.
“The plans will see more roles working closer to frontline services, facilitating greater understanding of the real issues facing local services and people, and how central government policy can support them. Central government can’t solve the issues facing local communities from Whitehall alone.”
Ministers will also publish a strategic workforce plan for the civil service alongside the Spending Review, which is set to take place on 11 June.