There's been a sharp fall in the number of people signing on in Gloucestershire as the figure for people in work grows despite the end of furlough.

The number of claimants in Cheltenham, according to the Department for Work and Pensions, is down a third on last year, at 493 for 18-24 year-olds and 2,683 overall. In Gloucester, it's down 29% for 18-24 year-olds at 699, and 28% for all ages, that's 3,690.

The number of people on the payroll in October, according to the Office for National Statistics, rose by 160,000. This is despite the winding down of the Government's Covid furlough scheme.

The employment rate (aged 16-64) in the South West is at 78.8%, higher than the UK average (75.4%).

Sam Beckett, ONS head of economic statistics, said: "It might take a few months to see the full impact of furlough coming to an end, as people who lost their jobs at the end of September could still be receiving redundancy pay. However, October's early estimate shows the number of people on the payroll rose strongly on the month and stands well above its pre-pandemic level."

She added: "There is also no sign of an upturn in redundancies, and businesses tell us that only a very small proportion of their previously furloughed staff have been laid off. In addition, vacancies again reached a new record high."

There were 1.14 million jobs on furlough - which cost a total of £70 billion to administer in all - when the scheme ended on 30th September.

Job vacancies now stand at 1.17 million, as many businesses continue to report difficulties in recruiting staff. Unemployment is now officially at 4.3%, close to the pre-Covid level.

Figures for Gloucestershire from the Department for Work and Pensions

Suren Thiru, head of economics for the British Chambers of Commerce, said: "The marked rise in payroll employment suggests that the end of furlough had little effect on the UK jobs market in October, as demand for labour continued to surge.

"Record job vacancies suggest that the chronic staff shortages encountered by businesses are intensifying and this could derail the recovery by forcing firms into a more long-lasting decline in their operating capacity."

Meanwhile, the Government says it has reached a landmark of more than 100,000 young people found work under the government's £2bn Kickstart scheme.

The initiative was launched in September 2020 and has money for 250,000 more places, with the government asking employers to come forward with more job offers.