Jobs in Jobcentre Plus

Jobcentre Plus is part of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), and everyone working in a Jobcentre in England, Scotland and Wales is a civil servant. Work coaches are the largest group, but a Jobcentre also needs team leaders, a service leader, disability employment advisers, employer and partnership staff, and administrative officers, and DWP employs work psychologists and visiting officers who work with Jobcentres. Most of these roles are advertised on Civil Service Jobs, usually at administrative officer, executive officer or higher executive officer grade.

The main roles in a Jobcentre

Work coach

Work coaches meet people claiming Universal Credit and other benefits, agree what they need to do to look for or prepare for work, and help them towards jobs. The role is at executive officer grade and is covered in detail in DWP work coach.

Work coach team leader

Team leaders manage a group of work coaches: allocating caseloads, checking the quality of decisions, coaching and handling absence and performance. The post is usually at higher executive officer grade, and most team leaders were work coaches first.

Service leader

The service leader runs the Jobcentre as a whole, responsible for performance, staffing, the building and relationships with local partners. It is a senior executive officer or more senior post, depending on the size of the office.

Disability employment adviser

Disability employment advisers support work coaches with claimants who have health conditions or disabilities, give specialist advice on adjustments and support schemes such as Access to Work, and build links with local health services and employers. Experience of disability support, health or employment services helps here.

Employer and partnership roles

Employer advisers work with local businesses to fill vacancies, set up recruitment days and promote schemes such as sector-based work academies. Partnership managers build links with councils, colleges, charities and health services so claimants can be referred to the right support. Both roles involve more time out of the office.

Support roles

Administrative officers handle post, appointments, phone queries and processing work behind the scenes, and some Jobcentres employ customer service staff at the front door. Administrative officer (AO) in the Civil Service covers the grade.

Roles working alongside Jobcentres

DWP also employs staff who work with Jobcentres without being based in one full time. Work psychologists give specialist assessment and advice on complex cases and need a psychology qualification and relevant registration. Visiting officers see vulnerable claimants at home. Debt, fraud and compliance teams investigate overpayments and suspected fraud. Universal Credit service centres process claims and handle phone contact, often in large centres away from high streets.

How DWP recruits

DWP uses Civil Service Success Profiles, with five elements: Behaviours, Strengths, Ability, Experience and Technical. For Jobcentre roles the application usually asks for a short personal statement and behaviour examples, followed by an interview mixing behaviour and strength questions. Common behaviours are Communicating and Influencing, Working Together, Managing a Quality Service and Making Effective Decisions. Team leader roles add Leadership and Developing Self and Others. Civil Service behaviours and how to write examples shows how to structure them.

Civil Service nationality rules apply. UK nationals, including dual nationals, can apply for any post, and about 75% of posts are also open to Commonwealth citizens and EEA nationals. Disabled applicants who opt in and meet the minimum criteria can be offered an interview under Disability Confident.

Before you start, expect identity, right to work and reference checks, plus baseline security clearance.

New starters in Jobcentre roles go through a period of structured learning before taking on a full caseload. For work coaches this includes benefit rules, coaching conversations and safeguarding, with shadowing of experienced colleagues. Specialist roles such as disability employment adviser have their own learning programmes once you are in post. The advert and offer letter will say whether training is delivered locally or at another site.

Pay and hours

DWP sets its own pay ranges for each grade, and the advert gives the salary for the post, sometimes with a higher rate in London. National DWP ranges are not in the sources used here, so none are printed. The 2026/27 Civil Service pay remit guidance allowed a headline increase of up to 3.5% across each department’s paybill, and a voluntary pay compression framework covers grades from administrative assistant to executive officer. Neither confirms an individual’s pay rise. Civil Service grades and pay explains how the grades compare.

Jobcentres open on weekdays during office hours, so the work is mostly Monday to Friday daytime, with part-time and compressed hours common. Staff join the Civil Service pension scheme, alpha, with member contributions of 4.6% on pay up to £36,199 in 2026/27.

Moving up or across

Jobcentre experience leads naturally into team leader and service leader posts, and into specialist DWP roles in policy, operations or performance. As a civil servant, you can apply for internal vacancies across government. Executive officer is the most common entry grade for Jobcentre staff, and Executive officer (EO) in the Civil Service describes what that grade involves elsewhere.