The claimant count rose to 2,560 in July, up 165 on the year and the biggest rise in Hertfordshire. Under-25s and over-50s account for most of the increase.

2,560 people in Welwyn Hatfield were claiming unemployment-related benefits in July, the highest figure the borough has recorded since December 2021.

That is 3.2% of residents aged 16 to 64. The count has gone up every month since December, seven rises in a row, and it is 165 higher than in July 2025.

The figures were published by the Office for National Statistics on 18 August and are available district by district through nomis.

The biggest increase in Hertfordshire

All ten of the county’s districts are in the same release. Welwyn Hatfield’s rise over the year is the largest of any of them in numbers, and second only to East Hertfordshire in percentage terms.

District July 2025 July 2026 Change
Welwyn Hatfield 2,395 2,560 +165
East Hertfordshire 1,790 1,930 +140
Hertsmere 2,365 2,450 +85
North Hertfordshire 1,920 2,005 +85
Broxbourne 2,085 2,165 +80
St Albans 2,155 2,225 +70
Watford 3,170 3,220 +50
Stevenage 2,040 2,040 0
Dacorum 3,195 3,190 -5
Three Rivers 1,620 1,600 -20

Welwyn Hatfield’s 6.9% increase compares with 2.8% across Hertfordshire and 1.6% across Great Britain, measured the same way over the same twelve months.

The rise is at both ends of working age

The middle of the workforce has barely moved. The increase sits with the youngest and the oldest claimants.

Age group July 2025 July 2026 Change
16 to 24 445 505 +60 (+13.5%)
25 to 49 1,430 1,455 +25 (+1.7%)
50 and over 520 595 +75 (+14.4%)

Put another way, people aged 25 to 49 make up more than half the total but account for around one in seven of the increase. The under-25s and the over-50s, between them just over two in five of the total, account for the rest.

Where the borough sits in the county

Welwyn Hatfield is mid-table on the rate, even after the rise. It is the direction that stands out, not the level.

  • Watford 4.5%
  • Hertsmere 3.6%
  • Stevenage 3.5%
  • Broxbourne 3.4%
  • Dacorum 3.2%
  • Welwyn Hatfield 3.2%
  • Three Rivers 2.7%
  • North Hertfordshire 2.4%
  • St Albans 2.4%
  • East Hertfordshire 2.0%

For comparison, the rate was 3.0% across Hertfordshire, 3.3% across the East of England and 3.9% across Great Britain.

The borough is an expensive place to be out of work. The median home in Welwyn Garden City and Hatfield sold for £410,000 and £380,000 respectively in the year to June, and a large share of local earnings comes from commuting into London.

What the claimant count is, and is not

This is the number most often reported as local unemployment, and it is not the same thing.

  • It counts people claiming Universal Credit who are required to look for work, plus the smaller number still on Jobseeker’s Allowance. Someone in a low-paid job can be included; someone out of work but not claiming is not.
  • The local figures are not seasonally adjusted, so month-to-month moves can reflect the time of year. Twelve-month comparisons are the safer read.
  • Counts are rounded to the nearest five, which is why the age groups above do not sum exactly to 2,560.
  • The latest month is provisional. ONS says the Claimant Count for the most recent month “is subject to revisions after first publication”.

One further caution. The UK headline that ONS published on 18 August is seasonally adjusted, and on that basis the national count fell on the month and on the year, to 1.665 million. The borough figures here are unadjusted, so they are not directly comparable with that headline. The Hertfordshire and Great Britain comparisons in this article all use the same unadjusted basis as Welwyn Hatfield.

What it means for you

If you are claiming, or about to. Universal Credit is claimed through gov.uk, not the borough council. The council handles Housing Benefit and Council Tax Support, and runs an eligibility checker and hardship forms on its benefits pages.

If you are looking for work. Jobcentre Plus appointments are arranged through DWP; you can find your nearest office with the department’s jobcentre finder.

If money is the immediate problem. HertsHelp is the county’s independent advice service, on 0300 123 4044. Cost of living is one of the areas it covers.

If you are 16 to 24, or over 50. These are the two groups where local claims have grown fastest, up 13.5% and 14.4% respectively in a year. Anyone who left education this summer, or who has been out of work later in a career, is worth checking entitlement for rather than assuming.

Sources