Jobcentre Plus

Present wrappers, decoration packers and Christmas tree fellers are all jobs available from Jobcentre Plus this winter - and the results of a poll released today(i) show how people often use a range of vocational skills at Christmas time without realising how these can be applied to paid work.

The poll, carried out amongst visitors to the Jobcentre Plus website, revealed that the top ‘soft skills’ used at Christmas are:

• budgeting (69%)
  
• careful planning (40%)
  
• problem-solving (40%)
  
• negotiating and managing family (22%)
  
• arguments and relationship

In addition, popular vocational skills, such as cooking and crafts, including making cards and decorations, could be applied to vacancies working as Christmas gift wrappers, party hosts and Christmas pudding makers – some of the many posts Jobcentre Plus is advertising.

Suggestions from Jobcentre Plus for jobs which use ‘soft’ skills range from accounting and administration roles such as personal assistants or office administrators, to ‘people skills’ roles including call centre agents and customer services workers.

Jobcentre Plus adviser, Anna-Marie Alderson said: “At Christmas time people use a range of skills that they may not realise they have; and many people could be getting paid for using them all year round. Jobcentre Plus offers a wide variety of jobs which require skills that people unlock at Christmas time.“

Anna-Marie continued: “Our advisers will take time to talk through your strengths, and offer advice to help match your skills to potential jobs, as well as suggest any appropriate training. Once you’ve identified your skills and interests you’ll find a host of jobs that might be right for you, and with the New Year approaching there couldn’t be a better time to make a new start.”

Some of the thousands of jobs on offer at Jobcentre Plus this Christmas include:

1. Father Christmas
2. Santa’s helpers
3. Mother Christmas
4. Christmas card sorters
5. Christmas decoration packers
6. Chocolate bear builders
7. Christmas tree cutters
8. Christmas display arrangers
9. Christmas pudding makers
10. Christmas retail assistants
11. Christmas party host
12. Christmas Tree sellers

Each week around 34,500 Jobcentre Plus customers find work. So if you are looking for a short-term festive job that could lead to longer-term work, we can help. To help us find a job that’s right for you, call us at Jobseeker Direct on 0845 6060 234.
You can also find vacancies and information about other Jobcentre Plus services on this website

Notes to editors

(i) The survey was conducted between 6-10 November 2006 on the Jobcentre Plus website, amongst 500 respondents.

The top hidden ‘Christmas’ skills revealed by the survey were:

• Budgeting 69%
  
• Cooking 69% (rising to 78% of women)
  
• Crafts (making decorations/ cards) 41%
  
• Time management/ Careful planning 40%
  
• Problem-solving when things don’t go 40%according to plan
  
• Household jobs from fitting lights to 39%, rising to 51% of men) fixing electrics
  
• fixing children’s toys 37%
  
• childcare 32%

1. Jobcentre Plus, part of the Department for Work and Pensions, brings together employment and benefit services for people of working age and is a key element in the Government's objectives to help people based on ‘Work for those who can, support for those who cannot’. It provides a professional and modern service to meet the diverse needs of employers and those seeking work, including:

• Personal advisers to provide practical support and advice to help those in need find and keep work, including training provision and benefits guidance
  
• A dedicated service to support employers in filling their vacancies quickly and successfully, including the ability to place jobs online
  
• Ability to search for jobs both online and over the phone through Jobpoints in Jobcentre Plus offices, the Jobseeker Direct phone line and through the website
  
• Swift, secure and professional access to benefits for those entitled to them.

2. Customers can access Jobcentre Plus services through around 1,000 locations across Great Britain, including over 800 newly refurbished Jobcentre Plus offices. Touch-screen terminals and Customer Access Phones are also available in a further 120 sites such as libraries and local authority premises. Jobcentre Plus works with over 275,000 employers to place 17,000 people into work every week. Over 400,000 vacancies are listed each week on its website and more than 4m job search requests are received, making it the number one UK recruitment website.

3. For further information on the services that Jobcentre Plus provides employers and people of working age see this website

For further information or an interview with a Jobcentre Plus adviser please contact Carolyn Gater, Abigail Tye, Siobhan Gilheany, Melissa Annetts on 020 7839 4321.

DWP Press Office:
Christian Cubitt, 020 7238 0754
Out of Hours: 07659 108883
Textphone: 020 7238 0788
Public Enquiries: 020 7712 2171
Website: www.dwp.gov.uk