Council bosses will work 'non-stop' to combat Wolverhampton's unemployment problem

Despite a drop in the the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in the city – down 320 to 8,797 last month – Wolverhampton's claimant rate of 5.5 per cent of its working population is the highest in the UK.

It means the city has now fallen behind other unemployment blackspots such as Hull and Middlesborough.

The figures were released on the same day the Express & Star launched the Ladder for the Black Country campaign which is urging businesses in the region to create apprenticeships to reduce youth unemployment.

Councillor Peter Bilson, Wolverhampton City Council's regeneration chief, admitted more work was needed to be done to end the city's poor track record on joblessness.

But he said the situation was improving.

"The UK is just beginning to emerge from one of the deepest recessions in history – and one that had a disproportionate impact on Wolverhampton," he said.

"We have to remember that cuts in public expenditure have also hit Wolverhampton hard.

"That being said, the council and its partners haven't been sitting on our hands. We've been working non-stop to overcome these hurdles and there's evidence we're having some success.

"The fact is that unemployment in Wolverhampton has fallen by 2.3 per cent since last year, while the number of 16 to 18 year olds who aren't in education, employment or training is now among the lowest in the region.

"We all recognise that much more needs to be done – but as the tide begins to turn in our favour, the last thing we should do is talk our city down."

Councillor Wendy Thompson, Wolverhampton's opposition Tory leader, called for a new approach to end the city's high unemployment level.

She said: "It's shocking that Wolverhampton is the worst in the country.

"For years the council haven't been bothered about this. There's a lot of work to do and there needs to be a far more dynamic approach.

"Unemployment is at the heart of so much that's going wrong in Wolverhampton. It puts so much pressure on people, particularly families, it affects their health, everything."

Across the Black Country more than 1,300 people came off dole queues across the Black Country in August as jobless figures nationwide fell to a six-year low.

The number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance across the four boroughs of Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton fell to 30,743 in August, down 1,318 on the previous month.

In neighbouring South Staffordshire the latest figures from the Office for National Statistics show the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance fell 52 to 955.