The number of people out of work in west London has dropped by 26% over the past year, new figures show.

In January, west London's unemployment rate was 1.9%, with 23,874 residents claiming Jobseeker's Allowance (JAS), according to data released by the Office for National Statistics on Wednesday (February 18).

In the same month in 2014, this figure was 32,159, or 2.6% of the west London population.

All seven boroughs within west London saw their unemployment rates drop over the 12 months, with Hillingdon experiencing the greatest percentage change.

Jaswant Lal, community engagement manager at Jobcentre Plus, said: “Across west London we've got unemployment going down and that's due to more vacancies.

“It's a really good thing because more employers are recruiting at the moment and more people are getting into jobs.”

She added: “We have done a lot of work. For example, in Hillingdon, we've been working with employers to get vacancies and support people into work. Especially in the retail sector, we've had a lot of vacancies and we've been working on work experience placements.

“We've also been working with employers to raise awareness of vacancies within the hospitality sector.”

Across the UK, the unemployment rate has fallen to 5.7% – its lowest level since May/July 2008.

Number of west London Jobseeker's Allowance (JSA) claimants

Jan 2015 % population Jan 2014 % population Total difference % change
Hillingdon 2,743 1.5 3,969 2.1 -1,226 -31
Harrow 2,254 1.4 2,954 1.9 -700 -24
Ealing 5,219 2.2 7,195 3.1 -1,976 -27
Hounslow 3,210 1.8 4,009 2.2 -799 -20
Brent 5,800 2.7 7,793 3.6 -1,993 -26
Kensington & Chelsea 1,778 1.6 2,267 2.1 -489 -22
Hammersmith & Fulham 2,870 2.2 3,972 3 -1,102 -28
West London total 23,874 1.9 32,159 2.6 -8,285 26