The Claimant Count
The Claimant Count is the most reliable data that we use in MtW. While figures are published monthly by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) it is still only an estimate, but one which is directly sourced from the DWP / Jobcentre Plus admin system. It covers the whole of the UK.
The Claimant Count measures the number of people claiming unemployment related benefits, usually Job Seekers Allowance, Universal Credit (UC) and National Insurance Credits.
The Claimant Count is NOT just about unemployment, but there is a large overlap. It does not meet the internationally agreed definition of unemployment specified by the International Labour Organisation (ILO), but does include people on UC who are in work but with very low earnings. Additionally, the Claimant Count can include some people who are NEET and economically inactive.
January 2023 figures
Unemployment
The ONS figure for claimant unemployed is 1,244,000. The claimant unemployment rate is 3.7%.
Employment by nationality (for Jul-Sep 22 next data 14 Feb)
87.9% of those employed in the UK are UK nationals. The employment rate for UK nationals is 75.6%. For non-UK nationals, the employment rate is 75.2%.
However, the rate for EU nationals is significantly higher at 80.9%.
53% of employment growth since 2010 has been among UK nationals
Young people (aged 16-24)
5.906 million young people are in full-time education (FTE) or work – up 3,000 (0.04%) on the year and down 23,000 (0.4%) on 2010.
933,000 young people are out of work (i.e., unemployed, or inactive) and not in FTE. This equates to 13.6% of all young people.
Unemployment rate for 16–24-year-olds is 11.1%.
Young people (aged 16-29)
| Age | East | East Midlands | London | North East | North West | Northern Ireland | Scotland | South East | South West | Wales | West Midlands | Yorkshire and Humber | Totals |
| Aged 16-17 | 235 | 175 | 150 | 165 | 405 | 50 | 650 | 280 | 230 | 265 | 285 | 390 | 3,280 |
| Aged 18-24 | 18,655 | 17,615 | 39,840 | 13,395 | 34,965 | 6,200 | 18,725 | 26,340 | 14,375 | 12,320 | 31,830 | 25,820 | 260,080 |
| Aged 25-29 | 13,605 | 12,120 | 36,545 | 8,790 | 24,940 | 4,570 | 14,350 | 19,760 | 10,735 | 8,105 | 22,260 | 17,775 | 193,535 |
| Totals | 32,495 | 29,910 | 76,535 | 22,350 | 60,310 | 10,820 | 33,725 | 46,380 | 25,340 | 20,690 | 54,375 | 43,965 | 456,895 |
Currently over 456,895 16–29-year-olds unemployed.
Vacancies
Vacancies (for Oct-Dec ‘22) at 1.16 million– down 75,000 (-6.1%) on the quarter and up 365,000 (45.9%) on Jan – March 20 (since Covid-19).
Single month’s estimate of vacancies (for Dec 22) at 1.03 million vacancies – down 189,000 (-15.5%) on the quarter and up 276,000 (36,5%) on March ’20 (since Covid-19).
Economic inactivity (all ages).
Economic inactivity is at 8.935 million (21.5%).
Excluding students, inactivity is at 6.587 million. This is 15.8% of 16–64-year-olds and is up 0.1% on the year
| Reason for inactivity | Current (000s) | Change on quarter | Change on Dec-Feb ’20 | Change on 2010 election |
| Student | 2,357 | -62 | +227 | +40 |
| Looking after family/home | 1,725 | -1 | -114 | -644 |
| Temp sick | 202 | +30 | +25 | +22 |
| Long-term sick | 2,438 | -52 | +325 | +210 |
| Discouraged workers | 31 | +10 | -4 | -49 |
| Retired | 1,130 | -52 | +7 | -398 |
| Other | 1,062 | +71 | +108 | +263 |
| Total | 8,945 | -55 | +575 | -555 |
