Staff attitudes ‘fail people with needs’

Disadvantaged people experience poor understanding and a lack of respect from front-line public sector workers, leading to a low take-up of services, according to a report published this week.

The report by the government’s Social Exclusion Unit finds that people with low levels of literacy, disabled people and people from ethnic minorities perceived some services as “inhumane, unhelpful and inappropriate” because of “unsatisfactory” interaction with front-line staff.

It also highlights that front-line staff were frustrated by the short time available for dealing with people. Some jobcentre staff reported they had to process claims on a “15-minute treadmill”.