New government employment figures show a rise in youth unemployment in Sheffield Heeley, despite the Government’s announcement this month of the closure of the constituency’s only Jobcentre.

The number of 18-24s unemployed in Sheffield Heeley rose by 9% between June 2016 and June 2017. The announcement comes shortly after the Department for Work and Pensions confirmed that the Jobcentre Plus on Eastern Avenue, Manor Top, would be closed, forcing employees and service users to travel to the city centre’s Bailey Court and Cavendish Court Jobcentres.

With increasing numbers of young people unemployed in my constituency it keeps making less and less sense to close Eastern Avenue. We have hundreds of 18-24s looking for work, trying their best to find a job, and the Government’s adding hours to their travel each week.

The closure won’t just affect thousands of my constituents, but will add pressure to increasingly stretched services at Bailey Court and Cavendish Court.

It’s another example of the Government’s tone-deaf approach to these closures which are hitting thousands of people across Sheffield and across the country.