Bath and North East Somerset had 2,440 people on out-of-work benefits in August, 1.9%, the lowest rate of six neighbours. The rise came from the over-50s.

2,440 people in Bath and North East Somerset were claiming unemployment benefits in August, the Office for National Statistics reported this week. That is 1.9% of residents aged 16 to 64, and 25 more people than in August last year (ONS claimant count via nomis).

The district’s headline number has barely moved for two years. Underneath it, one group has.

Claims by people aged 50 and over rose by 60 in the year, to 635. Claims by people aged 25 to 49 fell by 55. The over-50s now account for one in four of everyone claiming in the district.

The year in three age groups

Age August 2025 August 2026 Change
16 to 24 415 430 up 15
25 to 49 1,430 1,375 down 55
50 and over 575 635 up 60
All ages 2,415 2,440 up 25

The 635 claims from people aged 50 and over are the most in any month since September 2024, when the figure was 640. Two years ago, in August 2024, it was 620.

ONS rounds every one of these figures to the nearest five, which is why the age groups do not add exactly to the total.

Who is claiming in Bath and North East Somerset Claimant count by age, August 2025 and August 2026 August 2025 August 2026 0 500 1,000 1,500 415 430 Aged 16 to 24 1,430 1,375 Aged 25 to 49 575 635 Aged 50 and over Source: ONS claimant count by sex and age, via nomis, table NM_162_1, geography E06000022. Figures rounded to the nearest five. Graphic by Bath Daily
The district total hardly changed in the year. The mix behind it did: fewer claims from people in their thirties and forties, more from people over 50.

How Bath compares

At 1.9%, Bath and North East Somerset has the lowest claimant rate of the six council areas around it, and less than half the England rate of 4.0%. It also had the smallest increase over the year (ONS via nomis).

Area August 2026 Rate Change on a year
Bath and North East Somerset 2,440 1.9% up 1.0%
South Gloucestershire 4,050 2.1% up 2.5%
Wiltshire 7,165 2.3% up 4.3%
North Somerset 3,275 2.5% up 3.6%
Somerset 8,725 2.6% up 5.0%
Bristol 12,755 3.6% up 3.4%
England 1,486,460 4.0% up 1.8%

Bristol has more than five times as many claimants as this district. Its rate is nearly twice as high, so that gap is not simply a matter of size.

What the number counts, and what it does not

The claimant count is not the unemployment rate. It counts people claiming Universal Credit who are required to look for work, plus the smaller number still on Jobseeker’s Allowance. Someone unemployed but not claiming is not in it. Someone working few hours on a low wage, and required to look for more, can be.

The local figures are not seasonally adjusted, so a rise from one month to the next partly reflects the time of year. That is why the comparisons here are with the same month last year.

Over the last 24 months the district total has stayed inside a narrow band, from a low of 2,330 in October 2025 to a high of 2,540 in September 2024.

What it means for you

For most of the district this is a picture of a labour market that is not deteriorating. The change worth watching is at the older end.

If you are claiming, or about to:

  • The council runs a Welfare Support scheme, including a Crisis and Resilience Fund, for people who cannot meet essential costs (B&NES).
  • Council Tax Support is separate from the benefit itself and has to be claimed from the council. Our council tax bands page sets out what each band costs before any support.
  • Check the official rules on Universal Credit and Jobseeker’s Allowance rather than a third-party summary. Both changed in the last two years.

The next claimant count, for September 2026, is published by ONS in October.

Sources