Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
About Department for Work and Pensions
The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy.
The UK's biggest public service department it administers the State Pension and a range of working age, disability and ill health benefits to around 20 million claimants and customers.
What is DWP responsible for?
DWP is responsible for encouraging people to work and making work pay, including disabled people and those with ill health.
This also includes providing a decent income for people of pension age and promoting saving for retirement. Providing value for money and reducing levels of fraud and error and reducing work-related death and serious injury in workplaces through the Health and Safety Executive
DWP's priorities
DWP's priorities are to run an effective welfare system that enables people to achieve financial independence by providing assistance and guidance into employment.
This includes:
- increasing saving for, and security in, later life
- creating a fair and affordable welfare system which improves the life chances of children
- deliver outstanding services to our customers and claimants
- deliver efficiently: transform the way we deliver our services to reduce costs and increase efficiency
Carers and disability benefits
DWP deal with carers and disability benefits including:
- Carer's Allowance
- Attendance Allowance
- Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
- Personal Independence Payment (PIP)
Job centre Plus
Jobcentre Plus helps people move from benefits into work and helps employers advertise jobs. It also deals with benefits for people who are unemployed or unable to work because of a health condition or disability.
The Pension Service
The Pension Service provides pensions, benefits and retirement information for current and future pensioners in the UK and abroad. This includes:
Child Support Agency and Child Maintenance Service
Child maintenance is financial support that helps towards a child's everyday living costs when the parents have separated. For people who can't make their own family-based arrangements, the Child Support Agency and Child Maintenance Service:
- calculate how much maintenance the paying parent should pay to the receiving parent
- collect the maintenance payments, if necessary
Child Maintenance Options
The Child Maintenance Options service provides impartial information and support to help both parents make informed choices about child maintenance. It can also help them to set up their own, family-based arrangements.