THERE has been a sharp rise in the number of people claiming unemployment benefits in Uxbridge over the past six months.
But the Department for Work and Pensions have insisted the increase is not enough to warrant the Job Centre in Belmont Road, Uxbridge having to take on extra staff to cope with demand.
Over the past six months, 287 extra people are now claiming Job Seekers Allowance, bringing the total of claimants at the Uxbridge branch up to 1,673.
Those figures however, are only applicable up until the end of October, and is it likely that since then with reports of redundancies rising across the borough the number will rise in the coming months.
The DWP said: "We haven't taken on any additional staff. Uxbridge Jobcentre Plus is well placed to deal with the current period of rising unemployment. It is able to manage current volumes and has put in place plans to function effectively if numbers increase further across all benefits."
The Job Centre offer a rapid reponse service to those suffering as a result of major redundancies at large companies in a bid to get employees back into work immediately, and avoid them having to sign on.
