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Labour market briefings
Every month, once the Office for National Statistics publishes its labour market figures, we write a briefing for the councils, housing associations, funders and businesses we work with.
It reads the headline numbers, the revisions behind them, and what they can and can't yet tell us. It follows what's happening to entry-level jobs and to young people, tracks the trends that hold across the year, and says what we're seeing in our own work and how we're responding. Each issue is here in full: the summary on the page, the whole briefing to download.
UK labour market briefing
The headline figures did not move.
UK labour market briefing
Three things happened to the figures this month before anything that actually happened in the labour market was reported.
UK labour market briefing
After several months of deterioration, June brings the first tentative signs of stabilisation.
UK labour market briefing
In our April 2026 briefing we described a market that was splitting. This month the split has deepened into dysfunction.
UK labour market briefing
The UK labour market is splitting. Unemployment fell to 4.9% in the latest quarter, a surprise reversal of the recent upward trend.
UK labour market briefing
The UK labour market has stopped deteriorating and started stalling. Unemployment remains at 5.2%. Vacancies have flattened at a level 9% below pre-pandemic.
UK labour market briefing
The UK labour market is contracting across almost every headline measure. Unemployment has risen to 5.2%, its highest level in nearly five years.
Briefing notes
Longer notes on a single question.
Let's Work It Out
Our ongoing research and thinking on the dysfunctions of hiring, the reality of working life, and why building for permanence matters.