Due to the popularity with people asking for this number, I've today put in a FOI request for the geographical numbers for JobCentre Direct (0845 6060 234). This is the department that deals with job searches.

The number already in the database is for new claims but they can transfer you to the job search department.

Just got a reply back from my FOI request:-

Quote:

Thank you for supplying the additional information required to answer your FOI query.  I am writing to confirm that Jobcentre Plus Direct has now completed its search for the information you requested for geographical termination numbers. The information you requested for geographical termination numbers, associated with all contact centres that the 0845 6060 234 number routes calls to, is not held as they are not required for the system that is in place for this number. All calls to this number are routed via a Call Based Routing (CBR) system. CBR allows the call to be answered when the designated contact centre is busy, by moving it through the CBR until it finds a contact centre that has an operator available to answer it. This then will stop the call being ineffective.   All of the contact centres are grouped together in various groups and sequences forming configuration groups.  Each group then has a lead contact centre site, and from there the order of the sites where the call will move to are detailed.  There are no geographical termination numbers associated with this system.   With regards to the cost of the calls, to minimise costs to the customer, all telephone calls are charged at a local rate.  However customers using providers other than BT and mobile phone users are charged at their network provider’s normal tariff for 0845 calls.  Customer’s can also use “warm phones” in local Jobcentre Plus offices to make this call free of charge. We aim to predict the level of staff required to handle incoming calls on a day by day basis, however on occasions the actual call volumes can exceed that which was predicted. When this happens, an appropriate message is placed on incoming calls and callers are placed in a queue. In order to enter the queuing system, the call needs to be accepted by the contact centre and in line with private and public sector organisation standards, calls become chargeable once the call is accepted. I hope the information provided answers your query, please feel free to contact me personally if required and I will be more than happy to discuss your request further.

As you can see the geographical termination number 0845 6060 234 (job searches) doesn't exist as it doesn't use geographical terminaton numbers.

They did supply the number for new claims which was already in the database anyhow.

Does anyone know what this Call Based Routing (CBR) system is because according to the reply it doesn't require geographical numbers in which case it would have to be VoIP but I can't see a gov dept using VoIP already when it still hasn't really taken off.

I will email back and "correct" them with regards to the 0845 being local but I'm more concerned in obtaining geographical(s) for the job searches number.

I got a reply back as follows:-

Quote:

Thank you for supplying the additional information required to answer your FOI query.  I am writing to confirm that Jobcentre Plus Direct has now completed its search for the information you requested for geographical termination numbers. The information you requested for geographical termination numbers, associated with all contact centres that the 0845 6060 234 number routes calls to, is not held as they are not required for the system that is in place for this number. All calls to this number are routed via a Call Based Routing (CBR) system.   CBR allows the call to be answered when the designated contact centre is busy, by moving it through the CBR until it finds a contact centre that has an operator available to answer it. This then will stop the call being ineffective.   All of the contact centres are grouped together in various groups and sequences forming configuration groups.  Each group then has a lead contact centre site, and from there the order of the sites where the call will move to are detailed.  There are no geographical termination numbers associated with this system.   The geographical termination numbers for the 0845 numbers that are used for the First Contact service,  are attached for your information.  The information is in a spreadsheet format, detailing the site, the associated 0845 number and the geographical termination number for that site.  If you have any problems opening the attachment please feel free to contact me, and a hard copy can be issued to you. With regards to the cost of the calls, to minimise costs to the customer, all telephone calls are charged at a local rate.  However customers using providers other than BT and mobile phone users are charged at their network provider’s normal tariff for 0845 calls.  Customer’s can also use “warm phones” in local Jobcentre Plus offices to make this call free of charge.

I have of course corrected them on the fact the the job searches number doesn't have a geographical and asked for an internal review of their decision.

[glb]With regards to the cost of the calls, to minimise costs to the customer, all telephone calls are charged at a local rate.[/glb]

Tut tut, they never learn.  They've just been told that 0845 is not local rate.

Good luck with the internal review, and remember to re-itterate the fact about 0845.

After an internal review they are still refusing to provide the geographical numbers for job search enquiries:-

Quote:

I have been asked to carry out an internal review of your Freedom of Information Act request. For your information, I am the Network Manager for the Jobcentre Plus Direct Contact Centre organisation and my responsibilities include capacity planning, call forecasting, agent scheduling and real-time call management. I have read the correspondence between Chris Brittain and yourself in order to understand the nature of your request and the subsequent response. In your letter of 19th August you asked “ Under the Freedom of Information Act I would like the geographical termination numbers for all contact centres that the 0845 6060234 (job search) routes calls to”. You also asked “ I would like all the 0845 numbers that are used by yourselves, including any that may have more than one call centre used by a specific 0845 number”. I have reviewed Chris Brittain’s response to you of 12th September. In her letter Chris correctly states that geographical termination numbers are not held for 0845 6060234 (Jobseeker Direct) as they are not required in order to deliver the call to the destination contact centre. This information is correct. It may help if I elaborate a little. Calls are routed and delivered within Jobseeker Direct by proprietary routing software written and owned by British Telecom within their 0845 service. Each day my team reviews how many agents are available to take calls at each contact centre then sets user-defined parameters that distribute the percentage share of calls a site will receive on a pro-rata basis. If for example, Bootle had 100 agents available out of a national total of 1,000 we would set their parameter to 10%. BT’s proprietary software then works real-time throughout the day to send one call in ten received to Bootle. Therefore the site to which the call is delivered has no link with the geographical origin of the call. This routing software is the property of British Telecom and under our commercial arrangement with that company, we have no right of access to it. Therefore I am unable to tell you any more about how it actually works. In order to ensure that our customers are treated equitably, a standard ‘local rate’ call charge is made regardless of the source or destination of the call. As you rightly acknowledge in your correspondence, the actual charge made to a caller is outside the control of Jobcentre Plus as it is determined by the telephony service provided that the customer has contracted with. Chris then described our contingency call routing model (configuration groups). This model is only used when all agents are busy at a site and the designated queue length for that site is full. Calls are then delivered to the first contact centre in the contingency group that has agents available. I believe that Chris should have made clear to you the distinction between the primary call routing model and the contingency model for Jobseeker Direct Chris then provided the geographical termination numbers that are used in our First Contact service – the service through which claims for benefits and allowances and general benefit enquiries are made. The data she provided is correct and there is no other factual data available that she could have provided to you. My conclusion in this review then is that I believe Chris could have explained better the nature of our Jobseeker Direct contingency telephone routing model but in all other aspects I believe she has answered your request for geographical termination numbers as fully and accurately as possible. Outside the scope of the Freedom of Information Act review, I have noted your comments about the use of “local rates” in our marketing material and the Advertising Standards Authority and OFCOM Guidelines around these. I will investigate this guidance to determine if we need to alter the way in which we describe our services in the future. Thank you for drawing this to my attention. As an organisation, we work very closely with our private sector Information Technology and Telephony service providers  (EDS and BT) to ensure that their technical solutions offer the best service possible to anyone contacting Jobcentre Plus by telephone. We will continue to work to ensure our services are accessible and effective for anyone who needs them. Thank you for your correspondence in this matter. I trust that my conclusions satisfy your request for an internal review under the Freedom of Information Act.

Any thoughts?

Hope i have the right board.

Sent to Jobcenter Plus asking for Geographical number, their responce :

Quote:

Thank you for your email. You can find the address and telephone number for your local office at: http://www.jobcentreplus.gov.uk/cms.asp?Page=/Home/AboutUs/OurOffices Please remember if you are dialing from outside the UK to put 0044 in front of the telephone number and miss the 0 off of the area code. Regards Ben Johns Correspondence Officer Jobcentre Plus Secretariat

Found the Geographical of my local office on that search page.



[edit]by bbb_uk: This and subsequent posts were merged with an existing thread[/edit]

Thanks for that.

What we were after for ages was the equivs to the 0845 numbers they use. If you phone up ur local dole (sorry jobcentre plus) office asking about jobs, theyll tell you to call the 0845 number.

Also if you have a complaint about the JobCentre or DWP again its an 0845 number, never an 020 number which is where the DWP head office is.

We eventully after some very good detective work from one of the forum members found out the GN number. Its listed on this site.

mc661 wrote on Jan 9^th, 2006 at 5:43pm:

... ur local dole (sorry jobcentre plus) office ...

Slightly off-topic, but what is the "plus" bit meant to mean?  Do they do more than jobs, or what?

I didn't know they are called that now.

Think its another gov rebranding exercise (aka waste of cash).

Nah I think its because the old original dole office (Social Security Office) and Job Centre merged together so  people from both 'offices' were in the same new office and so "could offer a more enhanced service"

mc661 wrote on Jan 9^th, 2006 at 8:52pm:

I think its because the old original dole office (Social Security Office) and Job Centre merged together so  people from both 'offices' were in the same new office and so "could offer a more enhanced service"

Presumably, enhanced waiting times, enhanced cost telephone numbers, etc.
:-?

There is now a move for the processing of benefit claims to be in large centralised offices:

http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2006-06-28a.76509.h

These will use 0845 numbers.

http://www.publications.parliament.uk/cgi-bin/newhtml_hl?DB=semsimple&STEMMER=en&WORDS=0845%20numbers&ALL=&ANY=&PHRASE=%220845%20numbers%20%22&CATEGORIES=&SIMPLE=%220845%20numbers%22&SPEAKER=&COLOUR=Red&STYLE=s&ANCHOR=muscat_highlighter_first_match&URL=/pa/cm200506/cmhansrd/cm060619/text/60619w1050.htm#muscat_highlighter_first_match

Sorry for the big link- when you get there find the heading "Social Fund".

trickyd wrote on Jul 22^nd, 2006 at 5:33pm:

There is now a move for the processing of benefit claims to be in large centralised offices: http://www.theyworkforyou.com/wrans/?id=2006-06-28a.76509.h These will use 0845 numbers. http://tinyurl.com/jsgpn Sorry for the big link- when you get there find the heading "Social Fund".

I sent this email today to the person listed as the contact for the new system: rachel.albericci@dwp.gsi.gov.uk  When I receive a reply, I will post it here.

Dear Rachel,

Re Touchbase, September 2006 Article

I would like to comment on the proposed telephone access to the Benefit
Delivery Centres. The article states:

"....be able to contact us about their benefit claim:

by calling an 0845 telephone number"

Ofcom and the Central Office of Information advise that non geographic
telephone numbers should not be used by government departments due to the
increased cost of calling them from landlines or mobiles.

"Ofcom has provided advice to the Central Office of Information (which advises
Government Departments on how to publicise their services) and will continue
to provide this support. COI guidance now advises that 0870 numbers should not
be used for consumer contact centres."

"Ofcom also believes it is inappropriate for public bodies to use any 08
number exclusively (i.e. without also providing a geographic alternative
number) when dealing with people on low incomes or vulnerable groups."

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/media/mofaq/telecoms/nts/#content

Benefit Delivery Centres will almost always be dealing with people on low
incomes or vulnerable groups. As such, the use of a non-geographic 0845
telephone number is not appropriate.

Furthermore, those on the lowest incomes will often be on BT's Light User
Scheme or In Contact scheme. Both price calls to non-geographic numbers at a
higher rate than the standard BT service prices.

In addition, non-geographic numbers are not included in the "free" minutes
provided by landline and mobile telecom providers. This means that even if the
person calling the people Benefit Delivery Centre is able to afford a
telephone service with inclusive minutes (such as BT's base rental Option 1),
they will still have to pay to call the Benefit Delivery Centre.

I would urge you to reconsider the use of 0845 non-geographic numbers and
always provide a geographic number for those needing to contact a Benefit
Delivery Centre or other DWP service.

Regards,

Peter

Just if anyone is interested I am handing this letter in to the jcp on monday in sheffield... someone let me know if it sounds ok please!!! :exclamation :exclamation

Can someone give me some feedback as I will be sending this letter monday and need to know if it sounds ok???

29th November 2006
Re:- Request for Information under the Freedom of Information act 2000

Dear Sir/Madam,

I am writing to you to request some information under the ‘Freedom of Information act 2000’. I would like to request the information as itemised below;

•      The Geographical telephone number for the JSA/Income Support Ongoing claims help line / call centre which currently has an 0845 number
•      The Geographical telephone number for the crisis loans call centre / application line which currently has an 0800 number
•      Figures stating the amount of revenue paid for / received from the usage of non-geographical number (0800/0845/0870/0871) in the last 12 months

I understand that there is a professional image to non geographical numbers, but I do not agree with the use of them and especially departments of the government that people with low/no income have to call to arrange a claim to benefits. I also understand that these non geographical lines generate income when people call them, can you please notify whether you get a payment for the usage of these lines or if you are provided with services in lieu of receiving a fee.

I have read the Freedom of information act thoroughly and,  in my opinion, this request for information is not unreasonable. By the request for a geographical number I mean the phone number starting 01/02 not 08xx. This is the number that the 08xx number diverts the inbound calls to.

Thanks in advance for your assistance in this matter

Yours Faithfully



~Edited by bbb_uk: Removed request to delete post as I've deleted new thread started on this subject as there was already threads existing.

Hi trubster,

I've merged your post with an existing one on JobCentre Direct/Plus which was 2005.

If you scroll to the top of the page, you'll see that I've already done an FOI and even asked for an Internal Review but didn't get anywhere.

Also on one of the many, many Ofcom consultations the JobCentre actually complained to Ofcom about their 0845 not being 'local rate' as they thought it was (I originally informed them that calls to 084x/087x can cost upto 40p/min from mobiles, etc, etc).  I got the impression from the JobCentre Plus response to the Ofcom consultation that as soon as the new 03x numbers start they will migrate over.

If, after reading my FoI, you still wish to do an FoI then post back and post my FoI email I sent to them (I hope I still have it).

bbb_uk wrote on Oct 29^th, 2006 at 9:51am:

If, after reading my FoI, you still wish to do an FoI then post back and post my FoI email I sent to them (I hope I still have it).

Hi bbb_uk,

I did try to PM you but I have not made enough posts to this forum... I am definatly going to give it a bash and try and get the numbers out of them, I will make a complaint at the office if they do not provide ther numbers as they should legally release them under the FoI act... I have had no end of dealings with this office in sheffield and I would love to rattle there feathers... lol

If you still have the email, please send it to me, also, do you know if the info in the above letter is ok or just bull...

Cheers,

Kev

Hi trubster,

I'm unable to find the FoI in question so I can't post the email I sent them nor the email address although I do remember having problems getting it.  I had to ring the geographical number in the database for new claims and eventually had one of their c/s girls give me an email address which was local manager who forwarded it on.  The DWP website doesn't give a generic FoI email address out as its a vast organisation (its words) and you're directed to go to your local office and ask them.

Your FoI looks okay except I would add in that calls to 084x/087x can cost upto 40p/min from some mobiles.  For your information, in the next post is a copy of an email I sent to Inland revenue not so long ago (which you can use as a guide):-

......

Quote:

To whomever it concerns, I hereby request under the Freedom of Information Act the geographical termination number (those beginning with 01 or 02) that your Tax Credits Helpline, 0845 3003 900, points to. Your contact number that you ask us to ring (0845 3003 900) is translated to one or more geographical numbers and I hereby request you provide me with this information under the above act. I’m requesting this information because the cost of having to call your 0845 number from a landline ACTUALLY costs more than calling a local or national geographical call and in fact calling a 0845 from a payphone or mobile can cost upto 30/40ppm.  I therefore think that by using an 0845 contact number is not in anyway of benefit to us public, therefore it is in the public interest to have your underlying geographical number and in fact acts as a "cost barrier" due to the excessive costs of ringing an 0845 and therefore may stop the public from ringing you. I also noticed that you do not mention the cost of calling your 0845 number and this is now misleading according ASA/CAP (Advertising Standards Authority) and OfCOM because you can no longer remain silent on the cost of calling an 0845 as it is no longer classed as a 'local' call. Since over 2 years ago, BT removed the difference between local rate calls and national rate calls and they now cost the same.  For example, calling from London to Scotland costs the exact same amount as calling from London to Essex - and that is 3ppm daytime (5.5p for upto an hour at evening & weekends) but yet ringing a 0845 costs more. Also, as you may or may not be aware that not all operators outside the UK will allow connection to a UK NGN (non-geographical number) beginning with 084x/087x.  Although it may be rare to receive calls from abroad it is possible that I (and other people) whilst on holiday abroad may have cause to ring you for which depending on the operator may be impossible. Due to these access problems and cost of calls from some networks, the Home Office has announced that they will be releasing a geographical number to the general public instead of their current NGN and in the future the Casualty Bureau helpline (god forbit it should be needed again) will be a freephone number (free for most of the public) and a geographical number for those calling abroad and for those calling from payphones/mobiles. Also, are you aware of the new revised edition of Central Office of Information guidelines and I quote the following paragraph from it:- "(2) 0845 in particular has been known as ‘local rate’ – however with increased competition in the marketplace and resultant changes in tariff structures, these rates will often be in excess of normal local rates that citizens might be charged on their package. 0845 (and 0844) costs through phone boxes and some mobile tariffs can also be expensive to the citizen and this should also be considered." For further information on the ASA’s decision that remaining silent on the cost of the call or advertising your 0845 number as ‘local’ rate is now classed as misleading and can be read here:- http://www.cap.org.uk/cap/advice_online/ad_alerts/Advertising+0845+and+087+numbers.htm and here:- http://www.asa.org.uk/cap/news_events/news/2005/hanging+on+the+telephone+on+and+on+and+on.htm In brief, and taking into consideration my points above, here is the information I request:- 1.  What is the geographical number that your 0845 3003 900 points to (terminates at)? 2.  Does the 0845 3003 900 point to (terminate at) more than one geographical number? 2.1 If yes, then what other geographical numbers does the 0845 terminate at (including their area)? 3.  What was your reasons for the introduction of your 0845 number when it does not offer any benefit to us public (local rate and national rate no longer exist and calls actually cost the same) but an 0845 in most cases costs more (upto 30/40ppm depending on terminating network) and acts as a "cost barrier" as mentioned previously? 4.  Do you receive any revenue from the use of this number in anyway shape, or form (whether this is invested back in maintaining the call centre/switchboard or not)? 5.  Do you contribute in anyway to the use of this 0845 number? 5.1 If so, how much per minute?, and 5.2 What is the monthly/quarterly rental charge? If you have any further queries/clarification then please don’t hesitate contact me. As per the Freedom of Information Act (2000) guidelines I look forward to your response within 20 working days.

Remember this was for the Tax Credits helpline so use it purely as a guide and if you plan on using any part of, ensure its correct and relevant for the JobCentre Plus

Thanks very much, I will deliver the letter personally tomorrow... I will let you know when I hear anything back...

Cheers

Kev

BBB_UK, I handed the letter to the jobcentre personally but they claimed not to know who is responsible and say the FOI does not cover them, I insisted that I saw a manager and p****d a few people off... but I eventually gave the letter to a manager who said he would file it as a complaint????

I would like to know if they are actually required by law to give me the phone numbers requested?

Thanks

Kev

trubster wrote on Nov 1^st, 2006 at 1:25am:

I handed the letter to the jobcentre personally but they claimed not to know who is responsible and say the FOI does not cover them, I insisted that I saw a manager and p****d a few people off... but I eventually gave the letter to a manager who said he would file it as a complaint????

It is true that the JobCentre wouldn't know which specific person dealt with an FOI of this nature and it also sounds like the manager is treating the FOI as a complaint and not an FOI.  I initially rung the number in the database for new claims and obtained the postal address of the manager for that area (Liverpool).  I then posted my FOI to this manager and received a reply stating it had been passed onto the relevant department.  I then received a postal reply from that relevant department.  Using this reply, I then rung them up and obtained an email address so that I could ask for an internal review via email rather than snail mail.  It's this email address I've lost but I still have the initial address of the manager to which I sent my FOI to (although it was forwarded on).  I'll PM you the address.



trubster wrote on Nov 1^st, 2006 at 1:25am:

I would like to know if they are actually required by law to give me the phone numbers requested?

Normally yes but there are clauses they can use to get out of supplying that information.  Just read the various FOI to the BBC, etc (in this section) to see the excuses they use.  The excuse they used for my FOI is that they weren't aware of any number used that the 0845 pointed to as it was all done via BT's software.

I don't think you'll get very far to be honest as I said originally.

bbb_uk wrote on Nov 1^st, 2006 at 10:31am:

I don't think you'll get very far to be honest as I said originally.

I am suprised, I have heared NOTHING!!! by law they have 20 days to respond or they are breaching the FOI act

Well... I dont think they are going to respond, I phones them on friday but they say they did not get any letters from me,

How do I take this further as they have breached the FoI act

Thanks

Kev

trubster wrote on Nov 19^th, 2006 at 1:26pm:

Well... I dont think they are going to respond, I phones them on friday but they say they did not get any letters from me, How do I take this further as they have breached the FoI act

You said yourself that when you took it in and spoke with a manager they'd file it as a complaint.  Therefore, as I mentioned in an earlier post, they could well have treated it as such and not an FOI.

You should send it to the address that I sent mine to (I PM'd a while ago) and ensure that the subject title of the letter clearly identifies it as being a Freedom of Information Request and maybe put in the first line that if this has been sent to the wrong person, could they forward it on to whichever person/department would deal with this type of FOI request.

I have been soo bored today and had too much free time on my hands, so I tried some random extention numbers on the JCP's Switchboard (0114 259 ****) I tried 0123 and 0120-0130 and i found the number for the new claims department and a few very important people!!! I got the extention number of "The Communications Manager, Contact Centre Directorate" and she was shocked I got out through to her mobile but promised to look into the FoI request seriously, and she was shocked no-one knew what do to with it and that she did not get it sooner!!!

I got a reply to the email within 30 mins,


Quote:

As requested , confirmation that I have received your email. I'll continue to investigate the issues raised, and try to establish what happened to the original request. Yours faithfully ************ Contact Centre Directorate Communication Manager Level 2 Hartshead Square Sheffield 07*** ****** 0114 259 ****

Talk about right place right time :D

Hopefully this will get looked into seriously

~Kev

Do you think this sounds promising or should I not bother???

Just got a reply today and they have given me the numbers requested, they also say that last year they recieved £268'000 last year from the 0845 number!!! imagine if they had an 0871!!! lol

I will post it on here when I get some decent OCR Software

~Kev

Ok... here it is, Thanks to dave for OCR-ing it for me :D


Quote:

Jobcentre Plus PO Box 4047 Sheffield S1 9DE Telephone 0114 259 0000 www.jobcentrepJus.gov.uk 24 November 2006 Re: Request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 Dear Mr **** Thank you for your request for information under the Freedom of Information Act 2000 of the 30th October. I am writing to confirm that I am now in a position to reply to your request. However, in order to fully respond to your request it may help if I first explain the principles behind using a 0845 number and associated service. Firstly, they are used to provide a low cost call tariff and will in the main be cheaper than calling a national rate number. Using the 0845 prefix enables us as an organisation to provide better customer service by recording call statistics, providing a call queuing function, playing automated announcements providing customer information and allocating calls by requesting that customers choose various options. Unfortunately, geographical number prefixes such as 0191, 0207 or 0114 do not have the same facilities and flexibility as the 0845 service. In addition, if Jobcentre Plus were to move back to utilising geographic numbers, our customers who call from mobiles or do not have bundled services packages will continue to be subject to tariff variations similar to the current 0845 service in operation today. Additionally to these limitations, advertising additional local numbers for the large number of Benefit Delivery Centres being implemented over the coming months will no doubt be confusing for customers, difficult to manage and the Department would be liable for the cost of re-routing large volumes of misplaced calls. Benefit Delivery Centres have been designed to provide our customers with efficient, accurate and prompt payments in response to a claim for benefit. To this aim customer enquiries are routed to specialist teams so that staff processing benefit claims can concentrate on achieving these outcomes. As can be seen, a return to utilising direct dial geographical numbers would have a detrimental impact to the level of customer service that Jobcentre Plus is able to provide, without providing any call cost benefits to our customers. It should also be emphasised that Jobcentre Plus and its parent Department are unable to influence the call charges implemented by mobile telephone network operators to 0800 and 0845 numbers as they are utilised by other organisations as well as Government Agencies, We are also unable to dictate whether a customer contacts Jobcentre Plus via a mobile telephone or from a landline, as this is down to individual freedom of choice. Jobcentre Plus is committed to providing our customers with the highest standard of services available, and like you we appreciate that a significant proportion of our customers are some of the most vulnerable in society. Therefore the free phone '0800’ for Crisis Loan applications will continue to be available, supporting those in greatest need. You will no doubt be aware of a recent OFCOM 'Numbering Review' consultation, which considers the introduction of a new ‘03' prefix in the UK dial plans. In effect, this service prohibits network operators from 'tariff sharing’ therefore if implemented this would deliver cheaper call tariffs to public bodies presently relying on 0845 numbers. The Department for Work and Pensions, and in particular Jobcentre Plus have been pro-active in the consultation, and would welcome a move towards this new number range. The information you requested under the Act is as follows. The geographical phone number for JSA changes is 0114 259 0505. The geographical phone number for Income Support changes is 0114 259 0392. It should be noted that these numbers are subject to change. Across the Department as a whole, it received approximately £268,000 in the financial year 2005/2006. All of this was invested back into services. Further to this information you may be interested in the attached newspaper article. Thank you for providing this feedback. We take your concerns seriously as we are continuously seeking to improve our customer service. I trust that I have satisfactorily addressed the queries you raised however should you require anything further please do not hesitate to contact me again. Yours sincerely Mr A A Allwood Sheffield Benefit Delivery Centre Freedom of Information Officer

I cant believe how much they are getting by ripping off people having to claim benefits...

Sorry, been away from pc for a while, I have spoken to the JCP and the numbers in the letters arent for the relevant departments, I spoken to Mr A Allwood and he insists there is nothing wrong with calling 0845 numbers local rate and he has told me he has passed this on to the national advertising team and he also says there is no such thing as a geo number to connect to the 0845 number...  ::)

Spent too much time on the matter and I have filed complaint with ICO... Will keep everyone posted. :)

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERY1

Just one item to add to this.  The original reply included With regards to the cost of the calls, to minimise costs to the customer, all telephone calls are charged at a local rate.  However customers using providers other than BT and mobile phone users are charged at their network provider’s normal tariff for 0845 calls.  Customer’s can also use “warm phones” in local Jobcentre Plus offices to make this call free of charge.

This is no longer true, since January JCP (Hastings branch, anyway) have not allowed use of their internal phones for job-search, including to their own  department.  You either have to make an appointment to see an advisor who will telephone on your behalf, or call their 0845 number, who then will, in most cases, give you another number to call about a specific job.

The reason given is because of 'customer abuse of the system', which I translate as 'our 0845 number was costing us too much when people were using our own phones to call it and as we are only interested in the profit that can be made from the line we only want people to use their phones to call us'.

In Sheffield, They let you ring the rip off 0845 line for people to complain about missing payments or arrange claims, or even to make an appointment to see someone IN THE OFFICE

They WONT let you ring the 0800 Crisis loans number that people with no money use to get a loan!!! They make you go to a payfone or tell you to call from a mobile and hold for hours!!!