Proportion of Londoners aged 16-64 receiving out-of-work benefits by benefit type (2014-2023 Q4)
Last updated: June 2024
Next estimated update: September 2024
What does this indicator show?
This indicator shows the proportion of working-age Londoners out-of-work and receiving benefits.
What does it tell us?
13.2% of working-age Londoners are out-of-work and on benefits - a slight increase since last year (12.3%).
The number of out-of-work benefit claimants aged 16-64 jumped in 2020 in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, peaking at 14.5% in 2020.
The types of benefits claimed by those out of work has also changed in recent years, as Universal Credit has rolled out across the capital. For example, 0.7% of working-age Londoners were out of work and claiming Universal Credit in 2016. By 2023, this proportion had risen to 10.2% of the working-age population.
Compared to the rest of England
London now has a similar proportion of its working-age population on out-of-work benefits than the rest of England - 13.2% compared to 13.3%. Pre-pandemic from 2013-2019, the proportion of the working-age population on out-of-work benefits was higher in the rest of England. During the pandemic, the trend was interrupted. In 2020 London had higher, and in 2021 roughly the same proportion of its working-age population on out-of-work benefits than the rest of England.
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