The number of people on unemployment benefits has fallen in Kent, following the national trend.

There were 759 fewer claimants on the dole in April, a total of 18,646, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Every local authority in the county recorded a fall in the number of people on Jobseeker’s Allowance.

However the figure has still not recovered to the seven-year low recorded in December after two months of rises as Christmas jobs came to an end.

The largest decline was seen in Thanet, where 131 people left the dole queue, bringing its total to 2,718, the second highest in Kent.

Swale and Maidstone were also strong performers, down 116 and 114 people to 1,725 and 1,213 respectively.

“There are huge opportunities out there and the local economy is definitely more buoyant...” - Libby Swift, Maidstone Jobcentre

However the fall in benefit claimants in Medway, which has Kent’s highest total at 3,856, has slowed to 45.

Maidstone Jobcentre work service manager Libby Swift said: “It’s really encouraging. Reform of the welfare system is bedding in and we are supporting a culture of getting people into work.

“Long term unemployment has been a big win with our work programme being a huge success for our longer term customers.

“There are huge opportunities out there and the local economy is definitely more buoyant.”

Across the South East, there were 197,000 people out of work between January and March, a fall of 7.2%.

The unemployment rate in Great Britain was lowest in the South East at 4.2%. The claimant count rate was also lowest in the South East at 1.3%, jointly with the South West.

Nationally unemployment fell by 35,000 between January and March to 1.83 million. The unemployment rate fell to 5.5% from 5.7%.

Completing Kent’s picture, Shepway had 81 people stop claiming unemployment benefits, bringing its total to 1,424, while Canterbury recorded a fall of 72 to 1,115.

Large declines were also seen in Gravesham, down 63 to 1,344, and Dover, down 56 to 1,419.

More modest falls were recorded in Tonbridge and Malling, down 28 to 803, Dartford, down 21 to 865, Tunbridge Wells, down 15 to 507, Sevenoaks, down 10 to 591 and Ashford, down seven to 1,066.