Standing view · labour_market · Stirling
deteriorating, held with strong confidence, formed on 31 August 2026 from movements in 2026-07.
The claimant count in Stirling rose to 1,315 in December 2025, 1,365 in January 2026 and 1,435 in March, with 1,390 in February recorded as favourable, and the proportion of residents aged 16 to 64 claiming rose to 2.4% in March. Four of the five readings moved unfavourably, which makes the deterioration consistent across the period, though the movements are small on a count of around fourteen hundred.
A view is formed only where the evidence names a figure you can check. Each movement listed as a reason had to be large enough to matter and distinctive in at least one way — unusual against this area's own history, unusual against comparable areas, or sustained over several periods. A movement shared with peers counts for less, because it says something about the country rather than about Stirling. Where no figure supports a direction we hold no view rather than a hedged one.
| Measure | Period | Direction |
|---|---|---|
| Claimant count | 2025-12 | deteriorating |
| Claimant count | 2026-01 | deteriorating |
| Claimant count | 2026-02 | improving |
| Claimant count | 2026-03 | deteriorating |
| Claimants as a proportion of residents aged 16-64 | 2026-03 | deteriorating |