One in eight households in Burnley not in work – as proportion varies significantly across Great Britain
One in eight households in Burnley were not in work last year, new figures suggest.
It comes as the share of households not in work varied considerably across regions in Great Britain. An employment charity said local health and opportunity inequalities can lead to higher proportions of households not in work, and called for action to "break the cycle of worklessness".
Office for National Statistics figures show there were 4,296 workless households in Burnley in 2024, which accounted for 13% of all households in the area.
It was down from 7,515 and 25% the previous year.
Across Great Britain, more than three million households were not in work last year, representing just over 14% of all households. But this proportion varied significantly around the country. While there were just under 11% of workless households in the South East, the figure climbed to 21% in the North East.
The share of households out of work increased in 59% of local authorities last year, while it decreased in the rest of the country. In the North West, 17% of households were not in work last year.
A workless household is defined by the ONS as containing at least one person aged 16 to 64 years and where no adults are in employment. These figures exclude households where all adults aged under 24 years and are in full-time education.