The town's REAL jobless total

A TOTAL of 14,270 people in Warrington are on out-of-work benefits – an unemployment rate of 11.7 per cent.
But the total of people on Jobseekers Allowance (JSA) – the figure usually quoted as the headline rate of unemployment – is 4,780, or 3.9 per cent, according to the latest available figures.
The figures are contained in a report to be considered by the borough council’s economy and resources overview and scrutiny committee, which meets on Monday next week,( November 28).
They represent the position as it was in September – although by the time the committee meets, more up-to-date figures should be available.
Warrington compares favourably with the rest of the North West and the country as a whole in both sets of figures.
The regional average for people on out-of-work benefits is 15 per cent, while the national figure is 12.3 per cent. Using the JSA figures, the North West has an average of 4.4 per cent while the national figure is the same as Warrington at 3.9 per cent.
But Warrington has a number of areas ranked among the most deprived areas in England where the joblessness situation is much worse.
They are Avery Orange/Vulcan Valiant, Bewsey, Dallam, Greenwood/Grasmere, Howley, Longford, the Sutton Trust estate, the town centre, Watkin Street/St Peter’s Way and Westy.
In these areas, the average number of people on out-of-work benefits is 29.5 per cent – a total of 3, 360 people.
Using the JSA figures, the unemployment rate is 10.4 per cent – a total of 1,179 people.
The gap between these areas and the Warrington average has hardly changed changed in 10 years and has not dipped below 27.9 per cent.
Warrington’s Employment Learning and Skills (ELS) Partnership, launched in 2009, has deliberately set itself the challenging target of a 1 per cent reduction every year.
In its first year it has achieved a 0.6 per cent reduction in the number of people on out-of-work benefits in the target areas.
The report states: “The reduction matches the overall reduction in Warrington, but set against a difficult economic downturn which had previously affected our most deprived areas more harshly.
“Furthermore, the out-of-work benefits rate in those target areas had barely moved over the previous 10 years, so if a similar annual reduction could be maintained, that would in time represent a significant impact.”