THE number of unemployed people signing on in Reading has dropped for the eighth consecutive month.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) today show the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance fell by 86 from 1,787 to 1,701 between September and October, which is 1.6 per cent of the working-age population.

The number of people signing on in Wokingham dropped from 610 to 604 giving the borough the lowest percentage of JSA claimants at 0.6 per cent, whilst Slough has the highest percentage of working age population in Berkshire claiming benefit at 1.9 per cent, despite a drop from 1,820 to 1,758.

In West Berkshire figures were down 34 to 661 (0.7%), while unemployment was up in South Oxfordshire from 474 to 478 (0.6%).

Across the South East, there were 68,884 claimants (1.2%) down 2,045. Nationally, the number of people claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance last month fell by 35,469 to 887,771.