Unemployment rises on Fylde Coast

In Blackpool 3,595 people were out-of-work – nine per cent up.

In Fylde, 655 were claiming benefits – up seven per cent and in Wyre 1,025, up six percent were signing on.

However the number of people aged 18-24 fell in all three areas.

Nationally, Britain’s “strong” labour market has seen employment jump to record levels despite households feeling the pinch as wage growth lags behind inflation.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said the number of people in work reached another all-time high, climbing by 181,000 to 32.13 million between May and July.

The employment rate also rose by 0.5 per cent to a record high of 75.3 per cent on the quarter.

However, annual growth in earnings remained static at 2.1 per cent, both including and excluding bonuses over the period.

Once inflation is taken into account, total and regular pay both slipped by 0.4 per cent.

It comes as official inflation data published on Tuesday showed the pay squeeze on cash-strapped households had intensified.