What is Labour Market Data?

The labour market is the mechanism where the demand and supply of labour interact. The supply of labour includes all those who are participating in the labour force so, those either working or looking for work. Demand for labour is determined by factors such as demand for products, export demand, government policy and so on.

Further information about labour market terminology and concepts is available from The Labour Market Handbook [.pdf 239KB], which provides an introductory guide to understanding the labour market.

The South West Labour Market

Local Area Agreements

This section is aimed at providing relevant data to assist local partners who are working specifically with Local Area Agreements (LAAs). The data are structured against national indicator targets to illustrate progress towards targets over time. A range of subjects are covered as set out in the national framework. These pages aim to help monitor local data themes.

Local Area Data

This section is aimed at providing relevant data to assist local partners who are working with Local Area Data on topics such as Local Area Agreements (LAAs). The data is structured to provide data over time on a range of subjects that are aimed at helping monitor progress towards targets and priorities set out in national framework local area themes.

South West Labour Market Performance

This section presents a range of data that can be used to assess the performance of the labour market in the South West region.

At present, there is a proposed national framework for performance monitoring of Regional Skills Partnerships (RSPs), along with a national set of indicators. Performance data will be presented under the following headings:

Adult Skills
Young People
Economic Performance
Worklessness / Disadvantage
Labour Market

This framework is under development, and data will be provided for the South West as soon as the framework is agreed.

In the past, the performance of the labour market in the South West was assessed under the Healthy Labour Market Review (HLMR) process. Past data for the South West from the HLMR can be accessed by clicking here.

Public Service Agreement - Targets

Download PSA target data relating to key stage 2, key stage 3 aned GCSE results, achievement levels of 19 year olds, NEETS, skills for life, adults without a Level 2 qualification and participation in higher education.

Sector Balance Sheet

This is a key regional resource of labour market data at an industry level. It pulls together information that can be provided by key robust data sources such as the Annual Population Survey (APS) and the Annual Business Inquiry (ABI). The data is presented in a series of spreadsheets at a regional level for SIC, SSC and SWRDA priority sector industry breakdowns.

South West at a Glance

This is a useful summary guide to labour market functioning in the region. It is a smaller but complimentary publication to the HLMR. It is updated annually and is available to browse online or download. A downloadable chart summary is also available.