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Just when you thought the ripping up of 'OneGov' was over... Here comes another rebrand: this time, for Customer and Local Services.
Next month, it's set to become the Employment, Social Security and Housing Department.
The Government said the change will better reflect the department's core responsibilities – pensions, benefits, housing advice, long-term care, and employment services – and better align with the portfolio of Social Security Minister Lyndsay Feltham.
The change will officially take effect on 9 December, when staff move from La Motte Street to the new £90m Union Street building.
Pictured: Customer and Local Services was previously called the Social Security Department.
Deputy Feltham said: “This name change reflects the main purpose and day-to-day work within the department.
"With the department moving to the new Union Street building, this feels like the perfect time to make the update.”
Despite the name change, the Government said that ministerial responsibilities will remain unchanged.
Deputy Sam Mézec will continue as Housing Minister, and Deputy Carina Alves will retain responsibility for administering the Control of Housing and Work Law.
The Employment, Social Security and Housing department is not the only part of Government to have undergone a rebrand in recent years.
Kicking things off was a decision to drop 'States of Jersey' and adopt 'Government of Jersey' as the public service's new identity in 2019.
This came as former CEO Charlie Parker worked through his 'OneGov' plan to tear up the structure of Government and create several new departments. This also meant renaming and merging existing ones.
In 2021, the portfolio of the Children and Housing Minister was split into the Minister for Housing and Communities, while the Education Minister became the Children and Education Minister.
Pictured: The new government building in Union Street.
However, the portfolios were split again earlier this year, creating two distinct roles: Minister for Education and Lifelong Learning, and Children’s Minister.
Last year, the Environment Minister was renamed Minister for Energy and Environment to reflect the priority of carbon neutrality.
Similarly, the Minister for Economic Development, Tourism, Sport, and Culture became the Minister for Sustainable Economic Development – signalling a focus on long-term economic prosperity.
The now-Infrastructure and Environment (I&E) department was first created in 2018 as the Growth, Housing and Island Environment (GHE) department.
In 2019, the then-Economic Development Minister Lyndon Farnham suggested that work to do with the economy should be removed from the department's remit.
That suggestion was acted on in early 2020, with a decision taken to create a separate 'Economy' function, sitting within the Office of the Chief Executive.
With the 'Growth' (economy) section having left, GHE's name was then changed to Infrastructure, Housing and Environment (IHE) in late 2020.
Last year, the department – one of the Government's largest – underwent its third rebrand in just five years.
The most recent change removed Housing from the department, leaving just Infrastructure and Environment.
Infrastructure alone has gone through several rebrands, having been previously known as Transport and Technical Services (TTS) and, before that, Public Works.
NEWS EYE: Another Government rebrand to reflect who’s in charge
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