YOUTH unemployment in the Cotswolds is refusing to fall despite near-record numbers of people in work across the South West.

Sixty 18 to 24-year-olds are unemployed across the district, the exact same number as this time last year.

However, since 2010 youth unemployment has fallen 66 per cent.

The news comes against a backdrop of improving job tallies across the UK, with figures released this week showing a record 74.4 per cent of people in work.

The figures also show the South West has the second most people, only trumped by the South East.

Diane Haines, JobCentre spokeswoman, said: “Nationally we’ve got a high employment rate of 74.4 per cent and 31.7 million in work, it all shows the South West is one of the best I the country.

“In Gloucestershire we’ve got a really buoyant labour market and lots of employers are still looking for people.”

Nationally, average wages before bonuses grew by 2.2 per cent over the last year, not adjusted for inflation.

Damian Green, Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, said: “This remarkable set of figures shows that there are more people in work than at any other point in our history, which is fantastic news as we build a Britain that works for everybody, not just the privileged few.

“We’ve entered a period of significant change, but when it comes to our jobs market we’re in a position of strength, with over 2.6m more people in work than there were in 2010, the number of workless households cut to an all-time low, 750,000 vacancies in the economy and wages rising too.

“Our job now is to build on this success story so that everybody can benefit from the opportunities that are being created regardless of who they are or where they come from.

"Encouragingly, employment has risen in all regions and nations of the UK over the last year.”