The series is set in a busy West Midlands Job Centre, and focuses on the relationships between the staff, and the jobseekers.

[3] Extras and Recurring cast Guest stars Despite being set in Birmingham the series was filmed mainly in East London.

Manager Trish invites an army sergeant to the job centre to hold an armed forces recruitment day, and the soldier soon finds himself the object of intense scrutiny.

When a factory suddenly shuts down, Brownall is inundated with newly unemployed jobseekers, but Karl is in the worst possible state to cope with such a busy period.

Manager Trish offers to lend a hand, but she does not have a clue how to sign people on and her struggles with the computer reveal a shocking secret.

While celebrating her birthday, Trish receives a life-changing surprise, or so she thinks, and decides to promote Karl to the post of acting manager while she tries to get her head round what it means.

On arriving at work, he meets the new deputy manager Natalie Mason, whom Trish rates but about whom Angela is typically cynical.