Employment rate of 16-64 year olds by highest qualification level (2024)
Last updated: April 2025
Next estimated update: April 2026
What’s this indicator?
This indicator shows the percentage of working-age adults in London that are employed, split by their highest qualification level. It shows the employment rate for people:
- With no qualifications
- Whose highest qualification is RQF1 (GCSE grades 3-1, or D to G)
- Whose highest qualification is RQF2 (GCSE grades 9-4 or A* to C)
- Whose highest qualification is RQF3 (A levels and equivalent)
- Whose highest qualification is RQF4+ (apprenticeships, degrees and above)
- With other qualifications (such as those from other countries)
What does it tell us?
Employment rates are, on average, higher amongst people with higher levels of qualifications. For example, in 2024 90% of Londoners aged 16-64 with qualifications higher than A-levels (such as university degrees) were employed compared to 49% for people with no qualifications.
Employment rates are lower in London for those with RFQ2 and RFQ3 as their highest qualification. However this group is far less common in the London population. Just 24% of the working age population in the capital hold RFQ2 or RFQ3 as their highest qualification compared to 43% of working age people in the rest of England.
In London, a much higher proportion of adults hold RQF4+ qualifications equivalent to a degree (62% compared to 44% in the rest of England). Among this group, the employment rate is slightly higher in London than the rest of England. The same is true for those with no qualifications.
There are a number of reasons why people may not be employed, including that they are studying, retired, looking after the home, sick or unemployed. As such, it is not necessarily a bad thing for any one individual to not be employed. However, given the close links between unemployment and poverty, lacking employment is (on average) a key indicator of likely poverty outcomes.
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