Unemployment has continued to fall in Waveney.

The total number of people claiming Jobseekers' Allowance (JSA) fell once again in August, from 1,045 the previous month to 990 - a fall of 5.53 per cent.

That means the level of claimants has gone gone down 29.8 per cent in the past year, from 1,410.

However the reduction in youth unemployment has been even stronger, with 160 JSA claimants in August compared to 195 in July - a 17.9 per cent fall.

That means there has been a 52.9 per cent drop in youth claimants over the past year.

Paul Gisbey, district operations manager for JobCentre Plus in East Anglia, put the fall down to the 'general economic climate in the East of England'.

He added: 'We have seen that growth in employment and therefore vacancies.'

Mr Gisbey also said people who are on JSA are leaving more quickly because they have found work - 67 per cent stop claiming within four months, and 83 per cent within six months.

'Fewer people are coming in today and they are staying for a far shorter period of time,' he said.

There is still some uncertainty as to how many of the jobs people in Waveney are going into are full-time, as opposed to part-time or on a zero-hours contract basis - where people only work when they are needed by employers.

Figures on the divide between full-time and part-time jobs are not available for Waveney.

However Mr Gisbey said the national picture - where 79 per cent of people in employment are working full-time - is an indicator that most of the jobs are not part-time.

Many places like Pleasurewood Hills and Africa Alive! also take on more workers during the summer to cope with ezra demand - meaning there might be a seasonal rise and fall.

However Mr Gisbey said: 'People in seasonal work are well placed to pick up full-time jobs.'

He also said work experience programmes were helping to move more people into employment.

'Work experience allows the employer and the worker to have a look at each other,' he said.

'It often attracts an unfair reputation, but we find that it really helps.

'Employers are usually looking for the right person as much as anything else.'

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