Devon’s JSA claimants fall in November

The number of people in Devon claiming Job Seeker’s Allowance (JSA) in November fell by 85 compared to the previous month.

And 65 of those people were aged under 24.

At the end of November the total number of claimants stood at 3,693.

Overall the claimant rate for Devon – the percentage of Devon’s working age population claiming JSA – is 0.8%, far below the UK average of 1.6%.

At a district level,  the greatest falls were found in Exeter and Mid Devon, each falling by 61 and 50 claimants respectively.

The district with the largest increase was North Devon, increasing by 24 claimants when compared with the previous month, October.

The age group which saw the highest decreases in JSA claimants were the under 24s.

The number of people in that age category claiming JSA in Devon decreased by 65 claimants.

All districts,  with the exception of South Ham,  experienced decreases in claimants, including Torridge - an  area known for high youth unemployment - which saw its claimant count drop by 5.

Exeter experienced the largest fall, 30 claimants, closely followed by Mid Devon at 15 claimants.

South Hams saw an increase of just 5 claimants.

Devon County Councillor Andrew Leadbetter, Cabinet Member for Economy and Growth, said: “The latest reduction in JSA claimants for November is a welcome return to the consistent overall trend of a substantial reduction in claimants over the last few years.

"Whilst the reduction from October is, in the wider scheme of things small, we have to remember that overall JSA levels are now near all-time lows.

"It is especially encouraging to see such change mirrored by a fall in youth claimants from October - especially in the case of Torridge.

"However, as ever we remain determined to bring Devon closer to the goal of, not just full employment, but also a higher wage, higher skilled and more diverse economy.

"We continue to back schemes aiming to tackle the issue of comparatively high youth unemployment across Devon, through programmes such as Enterprise Education and Youth Deal. At the same time we are working to increase access to valuable employment space through investment in Exeter’s Sky Park, Okehampton East Business Park and Devon’s network of Work Hubs.”