Unemployment continued to fall in Birmingham last month, mirroring the national trend. Seasonally adjusted unemployment benefit count fell by 21,200 nationally to 1.48m (4.7%). In Birmingham it fell by 368 to 47,816 (10.5%). Overall unemployment fell by 57,000 nationally in the last three months to 2.51m.

In Acocks Green, the unadjusted unemployment claimant level fell by 31 in the month to 1,114. This means it falls below the 10% mark to stand at 9.9%. In the past year it has fallen by 64 (or 0.6%). Across Birmingham it has fallen by 2,721 or 0.7%. The number of long term (over 12 months) unemployed in Acocks Green is now 379 and the number of youth JSA claimants is 311. For comparison the unemployment level in Acocks Green in April 2010 – the last figures before the Coalition took power – was 1,280 or 11.6%. So it has fallen by 164 (1 in 8 of those unemployed) since then.