THE number of north Shropshire residents claiming Universal Credit increased by more than 200 from October to November, new figures show.

Figures released by the Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) reveal that on October 8 there were 7,216 people in north Shropshire claiming Universal Credit, increasing to 7,439 by November 12, representing an increase of 223 people.

Ben Vaughan, Shropshire employer manager for the Job Centre Plus said that despite the increase in the number of people claiming Universal Credit, the increase has not been as steep as first feared.

“2020 has been a particularly challenging year for our employers and employees in Shropshire," said Ben. "We began the year with record levels of employment, and have since faced considerable local challenges with flooding and the Covid-19 pandemic.

"The Universal Credit Claimant Count has increased across both our local authority areas between October and November, but these rises are not as marked as originally feared, and this is set against a backdrop of declining and stable claimant numbers previously since the summer.

"We have also seen a rise in advertised vacancies locally in the autumn, and although we would expect that at this time of year due to seasonality, we continue to experience growth across many of our key sectors.

"As we look ahead to 2021, Job Centre Plus will continue to help people of all ages to retrain and return to work, and will be working closely with both local authorities, employers, partners and providers to deliver this support.

"With mass vaccination rolling out across the UK, this brings us all renewed hope for a better 2021.

"Indeed, we have recently seen 15 of our jobseekers in Oswestry begin work at the Covid Testing Centre in the town, and they are now giving their support to Shropshire’s Covid cause.”