Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Closure of Seaham DWP Office

Monday 6 June 2022 · 2 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 1 Partly answered 1 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Ministerial equality assessment for the closure of the Seaham DWP office has been completed and is available in the House of Commons Library.
  • The Minister stated that the closure is part of a network design change to reshape how the Department operates, aiming for a smaller, greener, and better-quality estate for colleagues.
  • The Minister acknowledged that the buildings at the Seaham office and similar sites offer back-of-house functions and are not of good quality for colleagues.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Grahame Morris Lab Easington
Benefits & Welfare Standards & Ethics
Context

MP is concerned about the closure of a DWP office in Seaham and its impact on local employees.

Question

If she will publish the individual site assessment on the closure of her Department's office in Seaham.

Answer from Mims Davies

An overarching equality assessment has been completed, which considers the impact on all DWP colleagues. This has been made available for the House in the Library, and I am also arranging for the site-specific equality assessment for Seaham to be shared with the hon. Member.

Answered
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Q2 Grahame Morris Lab Easington
Employment Transport Benefits & Welfare
Context

MP raises concerns about DWP employees being relocated to other offices within the region due to planned site closures. The MP mentions a proposal by Go North East to cut and change 80 regional bus services, affecting his area.

Question

I thank the Minister for that response, but previously when I have raised the issue of the Seaham site, I have been assured or reassured that DWP employees at that office would be relocated to other offices within the region. Is she aware that the private bus operator Go North East is proposing cuts and changes to 80 regional bus services, many affecting my area? Does that not show that the DWP planning assumptions are rather precarious? Many of the DWP closures, including the one in Seaham, are in areas of economic deprivation that can ill afford to lose good-quality public sector jobs.

Answer from Mims Davies

This network design change is to reshape how the Department works, resulting in a smaller, greener and better-quality estate for our colleagues. Many of these buildings across the land offer back-of-house functions, and they are just not good-quality buildings for our colleagues. I absolutely understand the point. Where colleagues are being offered new opportunities to go to the Wear View House site in Sunderland, which is approximately 7.5 miles away, there will be individual one-to-one conversations with them about what is right for them and how they can stay with DWP and continue in a role that works for them.

Partly answered

Not addressed: The viability of relocating employees due to proposed bus service cuts was not directly addressed, focusing instead on the quality of buildings and individual conversations about opportunities.

How: Understood The Point, Individual One-To-One Conversations

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