DWP announce new objectives - 10 days after Rudd joins

This announcement is closely followed by the DWP publishing data about the number of complaints it received between April 1 and September 30 2018.

During these six months, the department recorded 19,824 complaints in resolution and 2,132 complaints in review.

Complainants who are unhappy with their decision can ask the DWP’s independent complaints reviewer to look at their complaint. Of this type of complaint 2,237 were received, but 363 were accepted for investigation.

The departmental plan comes 10 days after 10 Downing Street announced Amber Rudd MP would return to cabinet as work and pensions secretary. The objectives include:

• Build a more prosperous society by supporting people into work and helping them to realise their potential. This includes completing the roll out of Universal Credit and breaking down preconceived opinions about employing people with a disability or long-term health condition.

• Improve outcomes and ensure financial security for disabled people, and people with health conditions, by increasing opportunities to realise their full potential with the help of the welfare system and through the labour market.

• Ensure financial security for current and future pensioners by: helping people to increase their pension savings; providing information on their private and state pension provision to enable effective planning for the future; and supporting older people to extend their working lives.

• Increase every child’s opportunity to succeed by helping separated parents agree effective child maintenance arrangements and supporting families in distress to reduce parental breakdown and separation.

• Transform its services and work with the devolved administrations to deliver an effective welfare system for citizens when they need it while reducing costs, and achieving value for money for taxpayers. This includes launching HR initiatives to improve engagement and capability of the workforce whilst extending workforce diversity.