Unemployment figures in the county are creeping up – while wage rises are finally keeping pace with inflation.

The figures, released today by the Office for National Statistics, reveal the number of people across Kent and Medway joining the job queue stood at 38,210 in July – up 165 from June.

Provision figures for August – which are subject to adjustment – suggest another slight increase.

Nationally, the figures showed the rate of unemployment lifted to its highest level for nearly two years, at 4.3% in the three months to July, up from 4.2% in the previous three months.

However, the key findings in the data, were that average regular weekly earnings growth remained at a record high of 7.8% in the three months to July, matching Consumer Prices Index (CPI) inflation for the first time since October 2021.

Total pay including bonuses jumped by 8.5%, meaning it exceeded inflation for the first time since March 2022, up 0.6% with CPI taken into account.

Across the county, the majority of our areas saw modest hikes in unemployment, with only Canterbury, Sevenoaks, Thanet and Tunbridge Wells seeing slight declines. Maidstone remained static.

As before, and despite its dip, Thanet remains the area with the highest proportion of unemployed at 5.5%, followed by Gravesham on 4.3% and Dover, Medway and Folkestone & Hythe (all 3.8%).

The lowest areas remain the west Kent districts. Sevenoaks has the county’s lowest rate at 1.9%, followed by Tonbridge & Malling on 2.2% and Tunbridge Wells 2.3%.

Darren Morgan, ONS director of economic statistics, said: “Earnings in cash terms continue to increase at a record rate outside the pandemic-affected period.

“Coupled with lower inflation, this means people’s real pay is no longer falling.

“Unemployment continues to increase in the latest three months. Correspondingly, employment is down, driven by falls among men and the self-employed.”

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt said of the figures: “It’s heartening to see the number of employees on payroll is still close to record highs and that our unemployment rate remains below many of our international peers.

“Wage growth remains high, partly reflecting one-off payments to public sector workers, but for real wages to grow sustainably we must stick to our plan to halve inflation."

Bradley Post, managing director of Ashford-based finance experts RIFT, added: “The current outlook is certainly improving, with unemployment remaining low and wage growth excluding bonuses remaining consistent. This annual rate of increase in earnings has also edged ahead of inflation, with easing energy costs the main reduction seen by households.

“A positive in the grand scheme of things but one that is unlikely to be celebrated by a great deal of households, who continue to be stretched beyond financial breaking point as the cost of living remains extremely high.”