London's Economy Today - Issue 228 - August 2021

The overview

• London’s economy recovers strongly although weaknesses remain
• Furlough numbers are diminishing and business distress indicators are improving
• Inflationary pressures remain, if weaker for the moment

Economic indicators

• Passenger journeys on London public transport continue to recover gradually from a low base. 158.4 million passenger journeys were registered between 27 June and 24 July 2021, 3.2 million journeys more than in the previous period (30 May– 26 June). In the latest period, 49.6 million of all journeys were underground journeys and 108.8 million were bus journeys.
• In July, the sentiment of London’s PMI business activity index remained positive for the sixth consecutive month with the business activity PMI index for London private firms dropping slightly from 61.9 in June to 60.5 in July. It is at its highest level for over seven years. The Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) survey shows the monthly business trends at private sector firms. Index readings above 50 suggest a month-on-month increase in activity on average across firms, while readings below 50 indicate a decrease.
• Consumer confidence in London increased significantly in August with the consumer confidence index in London increasing to 13, from -1 in July, the highest level since May 2019. The GfK index of consumer confidence reflects people’s views on their financial position and the general economy over the past year and in the next 12 months. A score above zero suggests positive opinions; a score below zero indicates negative sentiment.

London's Economy Today supplement: The GLA’s Adult Education Budget data publication

The Adult Education Budget (AEB), devolved in August 2019 to the GLA, funds education and training for adults aged 19 and above.

In this article, we present key aspects and findings of the latest AEB data release, covering the first two quarters of the academic year 2020/21.

Some key demographic characteristics of the AEB learners show that of the total number of participants (130,590) in 2020/21:

• 70% were female (90,960 learners) and 30% were male (39,630);
• 57% were from a black or minority ethnic background (67,060 learners including mixed, Asian, black and other ethnic group learners) and 43% were from a white background (51,160);
• 13% were aged 19-23 (16,510 learners), 63% were aged 24-49 (82,750), and 24% 50+ (31,620).

Almost half of all AEB enrolments correspond to Preparation for Life and Work courses (which includes English for Speakers of Other Languages (ESOL), Maths and English) and the vast majority is funded via Adult Skills. Other popular subjects in Adult Skills include Health, Public Services and Care, and Business, Administration, Finance and Law. The most popular subjects in Community Learning are Arts, Media and Publishing, Languages, Literature and Culture and Preparation for Life and Work.

London’s Economy Today data on the Datastore

• The main economic indicators for London are available to download from the Datastore.