The chief of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced he will step down after thousands of unpaid carers were left with huge debts caused by systematic failures under his watch.
Sir Peter Schofield, the permanent secretary at the Department for Work and Pensions, told staff on Monday that he will leave his role in July due to personal reasons.
The DWP came under fire after The Guardian uncovered thousands of carers who claimed Carer's Allowance had been left unpaid, unfairly leading to workers being left with hefty bills.
Some claimed they had also been harassed for money by officials, while others were convicted of benefit fraud.
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The newspaper found that leadership shortcomings had been to blame for the scandal.
Some carers were said to have been left feeling suicidal, with one described as like being "at the whim of a faceless machine".
The DWP has insisted the chief's departure was unrelated to recent criticism of his departure.
In his email to staff, Sir Peter said: "There is never a good moment to step away from a job like this, but having passed my eight-year anniversary, now feels like a good time to pause and reflect on what I want to do next while spending more time with my family."
The chief of the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has announced he will step down after thousands of unpaid carers were left with huge debts caused by systematic failures under his watch
|GOV.UK
After 35 years in the civil service, Sir Peter was promoted to the top job in the DWP in 2018.
Just one year later, he vowed to MPs he would fix problems with the carer's allowance. What followed was a scandal likened to that of the Post Office.
The Sayce review found between 2015 and the summer of 2025 the official Carer's Allowance guidance was "unclear" and "ill-defined".
This prevented many carers from properly reporting their earnings.
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The Department for Work and Pensions came under fire after a review uncovered thousands of carers who claimed Carer's Allowance had been left unpaid, unfairly leading to workers being left with hefty bills
|GETTY
The review blamed systemic DWP leadership failures, poor benefit design, and flawed and unlawful administrative guidance.
Liz Stayce, the review's author, said the DWP’s "lack of organisational curiosity" about the dire impact of the failures on carers had struck her.
"This wasn't wilful rule-breaking - it simply wasn't clear what earnings fluctuations carers should report," Ms Sayce said.
The report also found the DWP often failed to warn carers they had gone over the earnings limit, meaning overpayments could accumulate "for months or years" before handing them huge bills.
Following the damning review, the DWP said it will set out details on how and when it will begin reassessing cases, and potentially cancel or repay debts, in due course.
Ms Sayce welcomed the announcements, saying the policy had "major impacts on carers' health, finances and family wellbeing".
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