Suffrago UK Data Hub
RankingsVerificationMethods

Independent service run by Suffrago – not an official government website. Every figure comes from an official UK publisher under its open licence and is checked against that source each time the data is refreshed.

Employment history by council, Census 2021

Usual residents of each of England's and Wales's 318 councils by employment history, Census 2021, from the ONS Census API (its “Employment history (4 categories)”).

Not in employment: Worked in the last 12 months, highest: Birmingham

60,649

Census Day, 21 March 2021

Verified against source, 30 October 2026, 11:48 UTC
Employment history by council, Census 2021
020k40k60k80kBirmingham60,649Leeds46,612Manchester38,807Liverpool33,594Sheffield32,397Nottingham30,227Bristol, City of29,915Cornwall27,029North Yorkshire25,782Cardiff24,444County Durham23,087Newcastle upon Tyne22,905Leicester22,738Buckinghamshire22,715Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole22,185Somerset22,115Bradford21,691Coventry20,968Wiltshire19,945Ealing19,236Newham19,003West Northamptonshire18,950Brighton and Hove18,794Barnet18,730Brent18,479

Source: Office for National Statistics (Census 2021). Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Data table

318 rows

AreaDoes not applyNot in employment: Worked in the last 12 monthsNot in employment: Not worked in the last 12 monthsNot in employment: Never worked
Birmingham E08000025697,71460,649200,437186,119
Leeds E08000035527,54646,612160,05177,744
Manchester E08000003348,26338,80783,51881,350
Liverpool E08000012288,81033,59497,05966,625
Sheffield E08000019 its area before 1 April 2025342,27832,397118,63263,214
Nottingham E06000018188,17730,22761,65843,571
Bristol, City of E06000023321,26729,91581,99239,291
Cornwall E06000052347,12727,029160,19835,951
North Yorkshire E06000065392,84625,782158,70038,163
Cardiff W06000015226,43424,44472,62138,809
County Durham E06000047310,32523,087129,64559,011
Newcastle upon Tyne E08000021176,75322,90560,26240,205
Leicester E06000016232,49122,73858,69854,644
Buckinghamshire E06000060382,91922,715112,13035,314
Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole E06000058251,31922,18599,01127,681
Somerset E06000066365,65122,115149,41434,368
Bradford E08000032345,97421,691101,62877,118
Coventry E08000026218,59420,96864,57141,191
Wiltshire E06000054343,56419,945118,33728,487
Ealing E09000009246,77019,23654,18146,928
Newham E09000025238,30719,00338,77354,952
West Northamptonshire E06000062298,21818,95081,12627,431
Brighton and Hove E06000043181,02718,79454,44722,835
Barnet E09000003266,16518,73063,34241,107
Brent E09000005225,67018,47948,29747,370
Croydon E09000008269,72818,11364,60638,272
Southwark E09000028218,44918,06239,86431,262
Kirklees E08000034277,02517,78091,33047,081
Tower Hamlets E09000030212,81517,58533,69146,215
Lambeth E09000022231,52916,93840,14029,047
Oxford E0700017898,64816,56428,84917,979
Southampton E06000045162,78216,22645,84524,069
Lewisham E09000023213,85415,85942,20528,635
Dorset E06000059225,45415,797116,64621,682
Enfield E09000010216,66615,73154,45443,133
Cheshire East E06000049261,78515,51796,00425,466
Cheshire West and Chester E06000050230,88015,47184,95325,846
Hillingdon E09000017206,83615,40049,25534,418
Wandsworth E09000032244,39015,14042,97824,998
Hounslow E09000018198,30014,90042,00732,974
Sandwell E08000028216,87614,49662,71947,741
Haringey E09000014182,61914,43336,83830,349
Greenwich E09000011202,25514,36442,78529,664
Salford E08000006180,60614,21046,55428,553
Redbridge E09000026209,87014,12345,72040,547
North Northamptonshire E06000061249,19414,06872,27923,986
Bath and North East Somerset E06000022121,60314,00044,90212,904
Plymouth E06000026167,08913,93661,10022,570
Camden E09000007134,73913,55834,51127,328
York E06000014126,93613,50546,25916,121
Portsmouth E06000044134,97013,42341,03218,579
Wakefield E08000036230,47313,26679,02530,606
Waltham Forest E09000031196,61613,19338,00330,614
East Riding of Yorkshire E06000011210,19513,13693,96124,923
Swansea W06000011141,24613,11260,78823,344
Cambridge E0700000891,50713,04625,95215,169
Milton Keynes E06000042205,60712,96948,63119,853
Derby E06000015168,37512,95053,36026,679
South Gloucestershire E06000025200,67012,94560,32216,487
Hackney E09000012183,98812,85230,71031,596
Shropshire E06000051203,78312,82685,96921,026
Bromley E09000006227,02512,79767,09923,070
Doncaster E08000017195,03912,72069,60530,742
Islington E09000019147,93312,44532,04924,162
Charnwood E07000130115,67012,40340,17015,728
Westminster E09000033128,51112,36233,35630,007
Wirral E08000015197,59112,28579,95830,365
Northumberland E06000057192,49812,24486,93528,891
Kingston upon Hull, City of E06000010170,92612,13553,59930,354
Wigan E08000010215,25012,01272,57629,492
Dudley E08000027205,64011,91675,73930,193
Harrow E09000015176,61911,72342,23830,623
Medway E06000035189,62211,67455,10223,375
Bolton E08000001189,11211,65559,56535,631
Wolverhampton E08000031166,59411,60253,23432,297
Central Bedfordshire E06000056208,56911,22257,76516,696
Luton E06000032151,28511,16433,47329,340
Exeter E0700004179,07811,14228,99011,499
Stoke-on-Trent E06000021165,04911,07255,13327,115
Sefton E08000014171,44010,99070,85125,952
Walsall E08000030179,55710,93259,54834,087
Stockport E08000007195,65210,90065,69822,523
Sunderland E08000024165,25210,87163,94534,104
Havering E09000016177,10310,78852,15322,008
Hammersmith and Fulham E09000013126,62310,62527,25918,650
Cumberland E06000063173,14510,54467,14622,419
Canterbury E0700010690,81910,47341,02315,114
Bexley E09000004168,62810,40247,21420,228
Norwich E0700014888,87910,35631,24013,448
Oldham E08000004153,25910,25746,49532,077
Reading E06000038121,73010,24227,39214,860
Barking and Dagenham E09000002151,71310,24228,67828,236
Rotherham E08000018168,03710,19960,33027,241
East Suffolk E07000244145,7049,75574,03216,566
Merton E09000024154,4809,64632,93818,123
Westmorland and Furness E06000064143,0759,58259,23614,699
Swindon E06000030164,1259,46143,60216,222
Colchester E07000071128,3889,46140,70814,158
Guildford E0700020994,0689,44729,75210,383
Peterborough E06000031149,0689,41337,76919,423
Trafford E08000009160,4599,15646,70018,738
Rochdale E08000005143,2858,98844,49827,002
Barnsley E08000016 its area before 1 April 2025156,4628,95356,26222,895
Rhondda Cynon Taf W06000016147,1978,92857,47824,048
Tameside E08000008151,5908,79847,92622,757
Warrington E06000007141,4478,73745,61415,176
Richmond upon Thames E09000027137,0098,73536,92612,608
Lancaster E0700012185,6958,68035,07413,485
Solihull E08000029139,6788,43250,84917,281
Sutton E09000029148,2068,40736,53916,487
Kingston upon Thames E09000021116,7478,39929,15213,764
Calderdale E08000033133,3788,24346,60918,401
North Somerset E06000024140,8638,21155,37912,275
Lincoln E0700013863,4648,16821,93410,247
Telford and Wrekin E06000020122,3648,06939,46015,648
Bedford E06000055127,9727,98935,45713,807
Kensington and Chelsea E0900002089,7267,95427,07618,619
Southend-on-Sea E06000033117,5357,90640,94714,298
Herefordshire, County of E06000019118,4147,77849,09611,749
Warwick E0700022297,9467,76831,84710,892
Gateshead E08000037121,9217,68545,18521,360
West Suffolk E07000245121,4407,60340,20910,696
North Tyneside E08000022134,7207,59647,41419,237
Slough E06000039113,2667,59519,84417,795
Stockton-on-Tees E06000004125,0287,56243,06020,945
Thurrock E06000034125,5857,52729,00813,880
Preston E0700012395,8007,49628,35216,187
Bury E08000002127,4617,38640,16418,840
Chelmsford E07000070123,6477,35339,39411,129
Basildon E07000066127,9197,30038,43213,920
Wokingham E06000041126,1487,23634,2659,853
Basingstoke and Deane E07000084132,3207,20935,6579,968
Huntingdonshire E07000011123,9626,99939,64910,222
Welwyn Hatfield E0700024180,5006,95622,8739,506
New Forest E07000091105,7436,94952,81810,275
Arun E0700022498,5266,91848,15211,293
Middlesbrough E0600000286,4206,90029,15921,446
Winchester E0700009483,2676,84829,8917,438
St. Helens E08000013115,3006,82842,82218,296
Cherwell E07000177115,4006,78030,0308,807
Windsor and Maidenhead E06000040106,1236,74830,29810,327
Maidstone E07000110120,0556,72037,41611,591
Gwynedd W0600000271,2426,66930,9488,534
Carmarthenshire W06000010114,3626,64251,42215,471
West Lancashire E0700012772,6426,51428,25310,020
Blackpool E0600000984,0606,48035,16915,328
North Lincolnshire E06000013106,4366,38441,61415,245
Dacorum E07000096108,5006,37331,0289,182
East Lindsey E0700013776,4556,35946,44613,034
West Berkshire E06000037113,0196,27933,4688,682
Newport W06000022104,9586,27533,23615,124
Crawley E0700022683,8256,26619,6688,734
Chichester E0700022575,7246,26434,6917,389
Isle of Wight E0600004678,7836,19345,5489,935
Wealden E07000065101,0466,16743,4949,444
Flintshire W06000005101,2056,12736,77610,855
Knowsley E0800001199,7126,11230,19318,502
North East Lincolnshire E0600001298,2936,08637,09315,494
East Hertfordshire E07000242105,5306,04030,3498,239
South Cambridgeshire E07000012114,0256,02833,7008,366
Braintree E07000067104,9836,02434,5539,708
Blackburn with Darwen E0600000898,7876,01628,03521,900
King's Lynn and West Norfolk E0700014694,6565,99142,40211,276
Reigate and Banstead E07000211105,8435,98329,8949,125
Gloucester E0700008191,0985,97725,4029,939
East Devon E0700004090,1665,96547,0447,653
Caerphilly W06000018109,9095,94742,52017,576
Epping Forest E0700007290,8445,90028,07510,161
Tendring E0700007681,6805,89547,16713,548
Torbay E0600002781,2275,87641,37110,850
Horsham E0700022798,2845,83435,0247,638
Mid Sussex E07000228105,8225,82633,3517,567
Neath Port Talbot W0600001284,2965,82637,29514,872
St Albans E07000240104,9475,77829,0348,408
Swale E0700011398,8805,77234,27912,746
South Tyneside E0800002388,9925,74635,43017,608
Newcastle-under-Lyme E0700019576,7985,70730,49310,301
Bridgend W0600001389,9905,70436,80912,985
South Oxfordshire E07000179104,0705,68531,9137,417
Ipswich E0700020294,8365,60727,85511,344
South Kesteven E0700014193,5885,53735,1409,139
Cheltenham E0700007879,5575,53526,1337,611
Thanet E0700011484,3605,48138,19712,549
Elmbridge E0700020796,9605,45428,0468,294
Teignbridge E0700004583,4795,44738,3697,508
Runnymede E0700021257,8185,42417,7547,083
Redcar and Cleveland E0600000379,8105,31935,56115,841
Wrexham W0600000686,6485,31832,01311,138
Vale of White Horse E0700018097,3505,31028,9507,303
Breckland E0700014389,2625,29937,4949,421
Nuneaton and Bedworth E0700021988,7235,26428,89811,311
Bracknell Forest E0600003691,0715,25721,2027,077
Waverley E0700021685,3165,24829,9877,678
Stratford-on-Avon E0700022188,3225,24433,9207,242
Worcester E0700023769,8945,20221,2997,477
Stafford E0700019789,0185,16734,2208,461
Rushcliffe E0700017678,3325,16128,2397,345
Powys W0600002382,3595,12337,1708,517
Eastleigh E0700008695,6275,12128,4047,291
East Staffordshire E0700019382,8295,10026,1369,952
Wychavon E0700023885,4355,06934,0177,974
North Hertfordshire E0700009992,6285,06528,2357,282
Ashford E0700010589,5935,05628,5639,535
South Norfolk E0700014992,4785,05436,4887,928
Test Valley E0700009389,6025,03829,0666,786
Broxtowe E0700017270,3165,02526,9928,610
Pembrokeshire W0600000973,5745,00935,7219,056
Halton E0600000683,2365,00627,93812,298
Vale of Glamorgan W0600001484,3974,92732,60410,011
East Hampshire E0700008583,6464,89930,4536,746
Tonbridge and Malling E0700011591,1014,87628,1648,060
Broadland E0700014483,8044,84635,6327,437
Newark and Sherwood E0700017578,1024,80030,5119,543
Conwy W0600000367,1004,76334,1328,746
Hertsmere E0700009874,4014,71720,5408,169
Havant E0700009077,7114,68032,5889,229
Stroud E0700008280,8284,67729,1746,425
Great Yarmouth E0700014558,1684,67327,6789,229
Spelthorne E0700021371,1334,66320,3156,845
Amber Valley E0700003281,3144,59731,6938,602
North Norfolk E0700014755,4944,58136,2186,687
Sevenoaks E0700011180,2954,57128,1227,526
Dover E0700010871,2054,56031,0579,588
Dartford E0700010784,8784,51919,3418,015
Watford E0700010374,1424,50315,5598,042
Eastbourne E0700006160,9414,49428,1778,074
Ashfield E0700017081,8844,48929,32910,598
Tunbridge Wells E0700011678,8074,44425,1416,919
Worthing E0700022972,5404,42227,1937,184
Gravesham E0700010972,1064,41521,2419,138
Wyre E0700012865,4304,40032,7729,344
North Devon E0700004361,5814,39026,7605,881
Folkestone and Hythe E0700011266,0224,38530,1159,236
Gedling E0700017376,9934,36527,6548,251
West Oxfordshire E0700018179,3544,33525,0385,510
Ceredigion W0600000840,2034,29021,3265,656
Rugby E0700022080,2824,24822,7557,077
Bassetlaw E0700017175,3534,24528,6979,511
North West Leicestershire E0700013470,5014,23223,2936,679
Erewash E0700003674,3464,20826,2668,086
Woking E0700021773,7034,20419,3626,674
Darlington E0600000568,9864,18724,28010,345
Fareham E0700008774,5064,18629,4076,414
North Kesteven E0700013976,9514,17429,3527,597
South Staffordshire E0700019667,7994,16730,3598,147
Broxbourne E0700009567,8764,16419,3267,641
Cotswold E0700007958,5964,15823,6074,472
Chorley E0700011878,6074,15527,1127,856
Hinckley and Bosworth E0700013275,6084,13026,7407,162
Mansfield E0700017471,6794,11624,9199,767
Rushmoor E0700009271,9004,10415,9167,836
Lewes E0700006361,1904,07428,0946,547
South Derbyshire E0700003974,1584,03722,3566,655
Lichfield E0700019468,3154,01727,0447,063
Pendle E0700012260,1583,96119,87611,763
Hart E0700008969,5253,90721,2844,692
South Ribble E0700012674,2463,89825,5617,329
Wyre Forest E0700023962,8333,89727,1277,750
Surrey Heath E0700021462,0323,87319,1655,381
Burnley E0700011759,4813,83620,57110,758
Three Rivers E0700010265,7163,81418,3235,918
Mid Suffolk E0700020366,4183,81326,9645,504
Chesterfield E0700003465,0983,77726,3188,377
Forest of Dean E0700008053,9473,77023,0306,257
Cannock Chase E0700019266,9183,76922,1177,715
Fenland E0700001064,7383,73125,3838,610
Harlow E0700007366,2073,72816,5286,865
South Hams E0700004454,2453,72425,7754,884
Harborough E0700013165,9683,72322,5635,371
Uttlesford E0700007763,5623,71419,3924,673
Hastings E0700006257,1903,69222,1187,994
North East Derbyshire E0700003863,2903,68227,6587,371
Bromsgrove E0700023465,3693,67423,7146,426
Hartlepool E0600000155,4013,66521,18912,083
Rother E0700006451,5553,66130,8787,016
Blaby E0700012970,7063,65121,9346,635
Staffordshire Moorlands E0700019860,0253,62625,8646,329
Tewkesbury E0700008364,0553,60722,2454,977
Denbighshire W0600000457,7553,60726,2408,216
Monmouthshire W0600002157,5483,59925,9615,849
Babergh E0700020057,9193,59425,4905,338
High Peak E0700003759,8873,58621,9285,532
Mole Valley E0700021057,3883,55221,4714,975
Redditch E0700023659,4793,53517,6726,350
Stevenage E0700024363,7193,48216,3155,979
West Lindsey E0700014258,1723,47626,0507,454
South Holland E0700014061,3583,43724,0246,303
Torfaen W0600002057,8183,33823,2587,862
Epsom and Ewell E0700020856,2403,30716,0585,334
Gosport E0700008853,2253,29119,8185,618
Tandridge E0700021559,6233,29019,4465,516
Castle Point E0700006956,1813,26723,3186,822
Rochford E0700007555,6093,23021,4325,390
Fylde E0700011947,8433,21824,6765,637
East Cambridgeshire E0700000961,0283,20718,6614,865
Mid Devon E0700004254,9293,19620,1314,596
Hyndburn E0700012052,2293,14217,7289,135
Malvern Hills E0700023548,1663,10623,2414,974
Brentwood E0700006852,0813,06817,1394,762
Tamworth E0700019953,0143,03616,8555,742
Derbyshire Dales E0700003543,7083,01420,9973,821
Torridge E0700004640,6082,75520,4494,301
Oadby and Wigston E0700013536,5262,73213,1925,297
Isle of Anglesey W0600000140,9332,71020,0105,225
Bolsover E0700003352,0952,70318,7306,745
Boston E0700013646,5492,68915,9405,324
Maldon E0700007442,0362,58517,3744,213
North Warwickshire E0700021842,8912,58114,8614,702
Rossendale E0700012546,6872,57315,8035,808
Adur E0700022341,4162,48516,2004,443
Blaenau Gwent W0600001940,5592,30116,8967,148
West Devon E0700004734,1172,26417,3503,365
Ribble Valley E0700012440,4842,22115,4063,450
Merthyr Tydfil W0600002436,7972,13113,7696,142
Melton E0700013334,2711,97012,5962,915
Rutland E0600001725,5341,80110,9522,762
City of London E090000015,9305081,412733
Isles of Scilly E060000531,4388947353
Barnsley E08000038given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000016
Sheffield E08000039given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019given for its area before 1 April 2025, under E08000019

Download CSVDownload JSON with full provenance

Map

Not in employment: Worked in the last 12 months · 316 areas, each shaded by the fifth of the areas its figure falls in

  • 89 to 3,961
  • 3,961 to 5,257
  • 5,257 to 7,386
  • 7,386 to 12k
  • 12k to 61k

Boundaries: Council boundaries, May 2026, from the geography spine. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v.3.0. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026.

Source and licence

Publisher
Office for National Statistics (Census 2021)
Check it yourself
https://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/create
Licence
Open Government Licence v3.0 – Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Retrieved
30 October 2026, 11:42 UTC
Raw files fetched

Verification

Verified against source, 30 October 2026, 11:48 UTC Run at 30 October 2026, 11:48 UTC; 1272 of 1272 figures matched the live source.

ResultCheckDetail
PassProvenance recordedOffice for National Statistics (Census 2021); Open Government Licence v3.0; retrieved 2026-10-30T11:42:33Z; 2 raw file(s)
PassRaw files match recorded SHA-2562 of 2 files intact
PassRe-parsing raw files reproduces figures1272 of 1272 figures and the headline reproduced
PassFigures are finite numbers1272 figures, 0 invalid
PassLive source matches every figure1272 of 1272 figures match exactly after downloading 2 source file(s) again (2 byte-identical); the headline matches
PassThe ONS's answer for England and for Wales agreesin 8 of 8 cells (a category in a nation) the councils sum to the nation's count at https://api.beta.ons.gov.uk/v1/population-types/UR/census-observations?area-type=ctry&dimensions=has_ever_worked within twice the square root of the councils summed (2 exactly; the largest gap 0.44 of its limit), the Census's cell-by-cell perturbation
PassSource page answershttps://www.ons.gov.uk/datasets/create – HTTP 200

Notes

  • Census Day was the 21st of March 2021. The ONS perturbs every count slightly to protect privacy, each cell on its own, so a council's categories can add up to a total a few people different from one topic to another, and its councils add up to England's and Wales's counts only within a few dozen.
  • By council as the ONS's Census API gives them, its lower-tier local authorities of 2023, with Barnsley's and Sheffield's figures under the codes they had until the 1st of April 2025, as the API gives them. Scotland's and Northern Ireland's censuses are separate, so their councils are not here.
  • Every council's categories together count all its usual residents, “Does not apply” those the question was not asked of.
  • The ONS's description of the topic, “Employment history (4 categories)”: Classifies people who were not in employment on Census Day into: * Not in employment: Worked in the last 12 months * Not in employment: Not worked in the last 12 months * Not in employment: Never worked
  • The ONS's quality statement: As Census 2021 was during a unique period of rapid change, take care when using Labour Market data for planning purposes.