THE number of people claiming unemployment benefit in Bradford fell by almost 600 last month, according to the latest figures.

Data released today by the Office of National Statistics showed that 12,422 people in the district claimed Jobseeker's Allowance during November - a reduction of 582 on the previous month.

The 12,422 people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in Bradford represents 3.8 per cent of the population. This compares to a regional average of 2.7 per cent and a national average of 2.1 per cent.

November's statistics break down as7,825 males and 4,597 females claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in Bradford. There has also been a reduction in the number of people aged 18 to 24 claiming unemployment benefit. Last month 2,985 claimed the benefit, a drop of 245 on the previous month, and a decrease of 1,675 on the previous year.

Sue Webster, Bradford relationship manager for Jobcentre Plus, welcomed the drop.

She said: "We have been doing a lot of work with young people through the Government's youth contract. There was a wage incentive available for employers that finished in August.

"We worked really closely with a wide range of employers in Bradford on this and asked them about work experience placements as well.

"A lot of people have gone on to work for their host host employer or have found work because of that experience.

"It also helps young people understand the work ethic."

She added that the economy had become stronger and that as a result, employers had more confidence. Although she added that the current set of figures could be buoyed by seasonal jobs, but that they were working on long-term strategies with employers too.

Mrs Webster also said they were working closely with developers and Bradford Council in an effort to ensure that any new jobs, such as those on the Broadway shopping centre site, would go to local people.

By constituency, Bradford West had the highest level of claimants with 3,829 people on Jobseeker's Allowance, which was a drop of 153 on last month and a decrease of 1,184 on last year.

Meanwhile. Bradford East had the biggest drop in claimants in the district, with a total of 3,472 people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance in November, a drop of 1,450 or 2.0 per cent, year-on-year and a decrease on the previous month of 182.

Bradford West Respect MP George Galloway said: "The number of out of work may have dropped year-on-year but improvements in work prospects are negligible.

"It's clear that the jobs market is slowing. In Bradford West it has barely started. We have over eight per cent of the people who want to work out of a job - a third higher than the national average - and we're back up one place in the league of shame, the sixth worst constituency for unemployment out of 650."

But Bradford East MP David Ward (Lib Dem) welcomed the statistics for his constituency.

He said: “It’s a fantastic early Christmas present to learn that unemployment in Bradford East has been cut by almost 40 per cent since 2013 and is at its lowest for almost six years.

“This shows that the Lib Dems plans for the economy have been working and we are seeing a very solid growth in the economy and increased jobs across Bradford.

“Unemployment is now significantly lower here than under Labour and we need to make sure we continue to build on growth to ensure that we encourage more businesses and more jobs back to Bradford.”

Keighley Conservative MP Kris Hopkins also welcomed the fact that unemployment in his constituency had fallen again, down by 69 in November to 1,379 - 534 fewer than 12 months ago. Youth unemployment in the constituency fell by 30 to 335, a reduction of 200 since November 2013.

He said: “I am particularly pleased that youth unemployment in the constituency is continuing to go down, which is a real priority for me. 3,120 young people in Keighley and Ilkley have taken up an apprenticeship since 2010, and that is a number I am determined to grow further in the months ahead.”