DWP is responsible for welfare, pensions and child maintenance policy. It administers the State Pension and a range of working-age, disability and ill-health benefits to around 23 million people across Great Britain.

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DWP’s vision is “to enable and empower everyone to thrive”. It has five priorities, each supported by several outcomes, which support the government’s missions to drive economic growth and break down barriers to opportunity. The outcomes do not have targets to indicate the desired level of performance.

The Department for Work & Pensions (DWP) has the largest expenditure of any government department. In 2025-26, its total expenditure was £319.9 billion, an increase of 7% compared with 2024-25 (£298.0 billion). Most of DWP’s expenditure relates to pension and benefit payments – £311.2 billion in 2025-26.

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