THE number of people claiming unemployment benefits in the Braintree district dipped slightly last month, but was more than double that seen at the start of the coronavirus pandemic.

Office for National Statistics figures show 4,620 people were claiming out-of-work benefits as of mid-January, down from 4,780 in December last year.

However, the figure was still much higher than the 2,025 recorded in early March 2020.

It means five per cent of Braintree's working-age population sought support in January – up from 2.2 per cent nine months earlier.

The figures include those aged 16 to 64 on Jobseeker’s Allowance and some Universal Credit claimants, who are unemployed and seeking work or employed but on low earnings.

Those on benefits last month were among roughly 200,000 across the East of England.

National figures, which are adjusted to account for seasonal changes, show around 2.6 million people across the UK were seeking help towards the beginning of the year – down slightly from 2.62 million in December, but well up from 1.24 million in March 2020.

The ONS cautioned that changes to Universal Credit in response to the virus mean more people can get the benefits while still being employed, which could affect the figures.

Separate ONS figures show the country’s unemployment rate rose to an estimated 5.1 per cent in the three months to December – the highest it has been since early 2016.

There were 726,000 fewer workers on payrolls last month than before the start of the coronavirus crisis, the ONS said, with people aged under 25 accounting for nearly 60 per cent of that drop.

Halstead Gazette:

  • Chancellor Rishi Sunak admits it's been a tough year

But a glimmer of hope in the figures reveals the number of payrolled workers rose by 83,000 between January and February in the second monthly increase in a row.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has pledged to set out his job support plans in the March Budget amid calls for more help from some of the sectors hammered by the crisis.

Mr Sunak said: “I know how incredibly tough the past year has been for everyone, and every job lost is a personal tragedy.”