Jobs in Buckinghamshire, 2017

There were 231,000 employee jobs in Buckinghamshire in 2017, 4,000 (1.6 per cent) fewer than in 2016.

Total employment fell by 3,000 (1.2 per cent) to 241,000.  Across England, employee jobs grew 1.1 per cent in the last year.  Buckinghamshire recorded the 5th weakest performance among the 38 Local Enterprise Partnerships (LEPs) for jobs growth in the last year and was one of only seven LEPs to see a fall in jobs.  The South East recorded England’s weakest performance, with employee jobs falling 1.1 per cent, with five of the region’s LEPs recording falls.

Among Buckinghamshire’s districts, South Bucks recorded the strongest growth at 1.3 per cent in the last year but still ranked only 167th among the 380 local authorities in Great Britain.  Aylesbury Vale also recorded growth with employee jobs, all in the public sector, growing 0.4 per cent to rank 213th.  Chiltern and Wycombe both saw a fall in employee jobs, with Wycombe’s 4.4 per cent fall the 23rd weakest performance of any local authority in the country, with falls recorded in both the private (4.4 per cent) and public (4.2) sectors.

Table 1: Employee jobs and annual change by public and private sector, 2017

Source: BRES, ONS, 2018

Employee jobs in the private sector in Buckinghamshire fell by 3,900 or 1.9 per cent in the last year, while public sector employment rose by less than one hundred (0.2 per cent).  The share of employee jobs in the public sector in Buckinghamshire has risen to 11.9 per cent, the lowest rate recorded among LEPs and third lowest among county councils, behind Leicestershire and Warwickshire.

The number of part-time jobs in Buckinghamshire grew by 4.1 per cent in 2017, the 5th fastest rise among county council areas but only 10th highest among LEPs.  Over the last two years the number of part time jobs has risen by 10 per cent.  Over the same period the number of full-time employee jobs has fallen by 3.2 per cent, including a 4.4 per cent fall in 2017, the second weakest performance of any LEP.  Part-time jobs now account for more than a third of the total (33.5 per cent), up from 31.6 per cent in 2016.

Part-time roles make up more than half of all employment in Buckinghamshire’s accommodation and food service and retail sectors (both 57.1 per cent), ahead of education (47.6) and arts, entertainment and recreation (46.2), and health (42.9).  Health, arts, entertainment and recreation and retail were the only sectors to see growth in both full-time and part-time roles, with part-time roles growing more than full-time roles in each case, while professional, scientific and technical services, property and information and communication technology saw falls in both full and part time roles.

Chart 1: Share of employees in full-time roles in Buckinghamshire by sector (%), 2017

Source: BRES, ONS, 2017

By broad industrial group, health employs the most people in Buckinghamshire, with 28,000 jobs in the sector, ahead of the business administration and support sector (22,500), retail (21,500), education (21,000), and the professional, scientific and research sector (19,500).  At the two digit level, retail is Buckinghamshire’s biggest sector, providing 21,500 jobs, ahead of education (21,000), wholesale (17,000), human health activities (16,500), food and beverage service activities (11,500), and computer programming and consultancy and employment activities (both 8,500).

Over the last year, the health sector has added the most jobs in Buckinghamshire, with employee jobs up 2,300 (7.7 per cent) compared to 2016.  Other sectors showing strong growth include arts, entertainment and recreation (1,500, 13.6) and construction and retail (both up 1,000, 8.3 and 4.9 per cent respectively).  Professional, scientific and technical services saw the largest fall at 3,500 (down 15.2 per cent), while wholesale saw a fall of 3,000 employee jobs (15.0 per cent), with transport and storage and information and communication technologies both seeing falls of 1,000 (down 13.3 and 6.3 per cent respectively).  The full results are presented in chart 1 below.

By location quotient, Buckinghamshire has the greatest concentration of employee jobs in wholesale (LQ=1.9), information and communication (1.6), property (1.3) and motor trades and arts, entertainment and recreation (both 1.2).  Buckinghamshire has the highest concentration of employment of all county council areas in both wholesale and information and communication technologies, ranking 3rd in property and 4th in both business administration and support and arts, entertainment and recreation.

Chart 2: Change in total employment by broad industry group by district, 2016-17

Source: BRES, ONS, 2018

Table 2: Location quotients for broad industry groups, 2017

Source: BRES, ONS, 2018

Table 2: Employee jobs by broad industry group, 2017

Source: BRES, ONS, 2018