Key Points
A summary of the key points in the 2024/25 financial year:
There were 39,592 employment vacancies notified to the Department for Communities in 2024/25. This represents a 20% decline from the previous year (49,337 in 2023/24).
The Jobs and Benefits Offices with the largest numbers of notified vacancies were Shaftesbury Square with 3,840 (10% of total), followed by Lisburn with 2,991 (8%), Holywood Road with 2,534 (6%) and Foyle with 2,452 (6%).
There were 26,082 notified vacancies for full-time positions (66%), 11,071 notified vacancies for part-time positions (28%) and 2,439 notified vacancies for casual positions (6%).
Belfast was the Local Government District with the highest number of vacancies notified to the Department (9,954 vacancies) which equates to 28.6 vacancies per 1,000 population. The Local Government District with the lowest number of vacancies was Mid Ulster with 2,014 which was 13.3 vacancies per 1,000 population.
The most frequently notified occupation types for vacancies were ‘Caring, Leisure and Other Service Occupations’ with 12,338 (31%), ‘Elementary Occupations’ with 5,817 (15%) and ‘Process, Plant and Machine Operatives’ with 4,302 (11%).
The industry type with the largest number of notified vacancies was ‘Administrative and Support Service’ accounting for 12,883 vacancies (33%), followed by ‘Human Health and Social Work’ with 10,089 (25%) and ‘Other Services’ with 4,309 (11%).
The greatest proportion of vacancies occurred in the more deprived areas of Northern Ireland, 31% (12,246) of vacancies were listed in the most deprived 20% of areas.
Introduction
This publication presents statistics on employment vacancies notified
to the Department for Communities (DfC). The information is taken from
the department’s vacancy service JobApplyNI which went live on 31
March 2022, replacing the previous vacancy service and websites.
JobApplyNI is a free website developed by DfC which offers a service for
organisations advertising vacancies and for jobseekers searching and
applying for jobs.
The statistics presented here do not relate to the total unsatisfied
demand for staff by employers, but to only those vacant positions that
have been notified by employers to DfC.
This bulletin presents the number of notified vacancies to DfC during
the 2024/25 financial year by Jobs and Benefits Offices (JBOs), Local
Government District (LGD), Standard Occupational Classification 2020
(SOC 2020), Standard Industrial Classification 2007 (SIC 2007), type of
vacancy and by Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure 2017 (NIMDM
2017).
Annual statistics are also presented to highlight the trends in
notified vacancies covering the period 2014/15 to 2021/22 financial
years from the previous IT system as well as the 2022/23 to 2024/25
totals from the new system.
Supplementary tables (Open Document Spreadsheet) accompanying this publication are available on the Department for Communities (DfC) website.
Annual Statistics and Trends
In the 2024/25 financial year there were 39,592 employment vacancies notified to DfC.
Trend Data
Numbers of job vacancies notified to DfC over the period 2014/15 to 2024/25 have fluctuated (figure 1). Often the trend mirrors labour market conditions, for example a decline in vacancies in 2020/21 (45,784) the first year impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by record vacancy levels the following financial year 2021/22 (91,087) when there was a re-opening of the economy from pandemic restrictions and demand for labour increased. Subsequent years have registered downward trends to below pre-pandemic and pandemic levels with the 2024/25 total (39,592) representing a 20% decline from the previous year’s total of 49,337 (2023/24). The NI unemployment rate has also declined significantly in recent years, reaching a record low of 1.5% during 2024/25. UK vacancy statistics have shown similar patterns with record totals in 2021/22 but reported 33 successive monthly declines for published data by April 2025, dropping below the pre-pandemic figure. Part of the decline in NI vacancy numbers since 2021/22 can also be attributed to systematic improvements with the move to JobApplyNI, details of which can be found in the notes section. Caution should therefore be exercised when comparing data from 2022/23 onwards with that from previous years.
Figure 1: Annual Notified Vacancies 2014/15 to 2024/25
Chart
Note: 2022/23 to 2024/25 are the first financial years providing vacancy data from the new JobApplyNI system. JobApplyNI allows for more enhanced systematic validations and it allows for identification and removal of rejected vacancies (which was not a mechanism available for data for 2014/15 to 2021/22). As such caution should be exercised when comparing with data from previous years.
Table
| Year | Number of Vacancies |
|---|---|
| 2014/15 | 54,696 |
| 2015/16 | 51,738 |
| 2016/17 | 60,948 |
| 2017/18 | 56,647 |
| 2018/19 | 58,563 |
| 2019/20 | 74,293 |
| 2020/21 | 45,784 |
| 2021/22 | 91,087 |
| 2022/23 | 63,300 |
| 2023/24 | 49,337 |
| 2024/25 | 39,592 |
Note: 2022/23 to 2024/25 are the first financial years providing vacancy data from the new JobApplyNI system. JobApplyNI allows for more enhanced systematic validations and it allows for identification and removal of rejected vacancies (which was not a mechanism available for data for 2014/15 to 2021/22). As such caution should be exercised when comparing with data from previous years.
Jobs and Benefits Office
The map below (Figure 2) presents vacancies assigned to Jobs and
Benefits Offices (JBOs). The purpose is not to rank JBOs by the number
of notified vacancies, but rather to gain an understanding of the spread
of notified vacancies at a local level.
In 2024/25 the JBOs with the largest numbers of notified vacancies were; Shaftesbury Square with 3,840 (10%), Lisburn with 2,991 (8%), Holywood Road with 2,534 (6%), Foyle with 2,452 (6%), Belfast North with 2,153 (5%), and Antrim with 2,045 (5%).
Figure 2: Notified Vacancies by Jobs and Benefits Office, 2024/25
Map
Table
| Jobs and Benefits Office | Number of Vacancies | Percentage of Notified Vacancies |
|---|---|---|
| Andersonstown | 317 | 1% |
| Antrim | 2,045 | 5% |
| Armagh | 792 | 2% |
| Ballymena | 2,022 | 5% |
| Ballymoney | 387 | 1% |
| Ballynahinch | 414 | 1% |
| Banbridge | 677 | 2% |
| Bangor | 1,112 | 3% |
| Belfast North | 2,153 | 5% |
| Carrickfergus | 423 | 1% |
| Coleraine | 1,334 | 3% |
| Cookstown | 460 | 1% |
| Downpatrick | 355 | 1% |
| Dungannon | 724 | 2% |
| Enniskillen | 1,474 | 4% |
| Falls Road | 977 | 2% |
| Foyle | 2,452 | 6% |
| Holywood Road | 2,534 | 6% |
| Kilkeel | 95 | 0% |
| Knockbreda | 1,271 | 3% |
| Larne | 437 | 1% |
| Limavady | 1,110 | 3% |
| Lisburn | 2,991 | 8% |
| Lisnagelvin | 1,591 | 4% |
| Lurgan | 768 | 2% |
| Magherafelt | 752 | 2% |
| Newcastle | 239 | 1% |
| Newry | 1,122 | 3% |
| Newtownabbey | 722 | 2% |
| Newtownards | 678 | 2% |
| Omagh | 860 | 2% |
| Portadown | 875 | 2% |
| Shaftesbury Square | 3,840 | 10% |
| Shankill Road | 184 | 0% |
| Strabane | 659 | 2% |
| Unknown | 746 | 2% |
| Total | 39,592 | 100% |
Local Government District
Belfast is the LGD with the largest number of notified vacancies in
2024/25 (9,954). This equates to 28.6 notified vacancies per 1,000
population. Derry City and Strabane reported 4,684 notified vacancies
equating to 31.1 per 1,000 population.
The LGD of Mid Ulster reported the lowest number of notified vacancies with 2,014 which equated to 13.3 per 1,000 population. Caution must be shown when interpreting local level trends as in some cases, these trends may be distorted by the activity of a single employer.
Figure 3: Notified Vacancies by Local Government District, 2024/25
Map
Map per 1,000 population
Table
| Local Government District | Number of Notified Vacancies | Notified Vacancies per 1,000 Population |
|---|---|---|
| Antrim and Newtownabbey | 3,314 | 22.7 |
| Ards and North Down | 2,428 | 14.8 |
| Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon | 2,820 | 12.8 |
| Belfast | 9,954 | 28.6 |
| Causeway Coast and Glens | 2,905 | 20.6 |
| Derry City and Strabane | 4,684 | 31.1 |
| Fermanagh and Omagh | 2,225 | 19.0 |
| Lisburn and Castlereagh | 3,730 | 24.9 |
| Mid and East Antrim | 2,838 | 20.4 |
| Mid Ulster | 2,014 | 13.3 |
| Newry, Mourne and Down | 2,165 | 11.9 |
| Unknown | 515 | – |
| Northern Ireland | 39,592 | 20.7 |
Occupation Type
Standard Occupational Classifications (SOC 2020) are used to classify
vacancies into ‘job’ categories. Jobs are classified into groups
according to skill level and skill specialisation. Occupational
information serves a variety of purposes. It informs the job matching
activities undertaken by employment agencies; it provides a framework
for the provision of career information; and yields guidance for the
development of labour market policies, especially those which relate to
the promotion of work based training.
The most frequently notified occupation types for vacancies were
‘Caring, Leisure and Other Service Occupations’ with 12,338 (31%),
‘Elementary Occupations’ with 5,817 (15%) and ‘Process, Plant and
Machine Operatives’ with 4,302 (11%).
The least frequently notified occupation types for vacancies were in
‘Managers, Directors and Senior Officials’ with 1,138 (3%).
Figure 4: Notified Vacancies by SOC (2020) Major Groups, 2024/25
Chart
Table
| SOC 2020 Major Group | Number of Notified Vacancies | Percentage of Notified Vacancies |
|---|---|---|
| Caring, Leisure and Other Service Occupations | 12,338 | 31% |
| Elementary Occupations | 5,817 | 15% |
| Process, Plant and Machine Operatives | 4,302 | 11% |
| Professional Occupations | 3,597 | 9% |
| Sales and Customer Service Occupations | 3,211 | 8% |
| Associate Professional Occupations | 3,165 | 8% |
| Administrative and Secretarial Occupations | 2,824 | 7% |
| Skilled Trades Occupations | 2,743 | 7% |
| Managers, Directors and Senior Officials | 1,138 | 3% |
| Unknown | 457 | 1% |
| Total | 39,592 | 100% |
Industry Type
The Standard Industrial Classification (SIC 2007) is used in
classifying business establishments by the type of economic activity in
which they are engaged. The classification provides a framework for the
collection, presentation and analysis of data, while also promoting
uniformity. It can also be used for administrative purposes as a
convenient way of classifying industrial activity into a common
structure.
In the financial year 2024/25, the SIC (2007) group with the largest number of notified vacancies was ‘Administrative and Support Service’ which accounted for 12,883 (33%) notified vacancies. This was followed by ‘Human Health and Social Work’ (10,089, 25%) and ‘Other Services’ (4,309, 11%).
Figure 5: Notified Vacancies by SIC (2007) Sections (Top 5), 2024/25
Chart
Table
| SIC 2007 Section | Number of Notified Vacancies | Percentage of Notified Vacancies |
|---|---|---|
| Administrative and Support Service | 12,883 | 33% |
| Human Health and Social Work | 10,089 | 25% |
| Other Services | 4,309 | 11% |
| Public Administration and Defence; Compulsory Social Security | 2,396 | 6% |
| Wholesale and Retail Trade; Repair of Motor Vehicles and Motorcycles | 2,338 | 6% |
| Accommodation and Food Services | 1,869 | 5% |
| Manufacturing | 1,472 | 4% |
| Education | 1,316 | 3% |
| Transportation and Storage | 618 | 2% |
| Construction | 553 | 1% |
| Professional, Scientific and Technical | 320 | 1% |
| Arts, Entertainment and Recreation | 279 | 1% |
| Water Supply; Sewerage, Waste Management and Remediation | 187 | 0% |
| Real Estate Activities | 162 | 0% |
| Electricity, Gas, Steam and Air Conditioning Supply | 88 | 0% |
| Agriculture, Forestry and Fishing | 81 | 0% |
| Financial and Insurance | 74 | 0% |
| Activities of Extraterritorial Organisations and Bodies | 49 | 0% |
| Information and Communication | 49 | 0% |
| Mining and Quarrying | 19 | 0% |
| Activities of Households; Goods- and Services-Production for Own Use | 14 | 0% |
| Unknown | 427 | 1% |
| Total | 39,592 | 100% |
Deprivation
The Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NIMDM 2017)
comprises seven domains of deprivation, each measuring a distinct type;
income, employment, health & disability, education skills &
training, access to services, living environment and crime &
disorder. Northern Ireland’s 890 Super Output Areas (SOA) are ranked in
terms of deprivation level, which in turn, are grouped into five equal
bands known as quintiles. Measures of deprivation have been used to
inform policy and target areas of need in Northern Ireland since the
1970s.
The data in Figure 6 shows that in the 2024/25 financial year the
greatest proportion of vacancies occurred in the more deprived areas of
Northern Ireland, 12,246 vacancies (31%) were listed in the most
deprived 20% of areas compared to 7,464 vacancies (19%) for the least
deprived 20% of areas.
Figure 6: Notified Vacancies by NIMDM (2017) quintiles, 2024/25
Chart
Table
| Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure 2017 Quintiles | Number of Notified Vacancies | Percentage of Notified Vacancies |
|---|---|---|
| Quintile 1 (most deprived) | 12,246 | 31% |
| Quintile 2 | 6,847 | 17% |
| Quintile 3 | 5,494 | 14% |
| Quintile 4 | 7,026 | 18% |
| Quintile 5 (least deprived) | 7,464 | 19% |
| Unknown | 515 | 1% |
| Total | 39,592 | 100% |
Vacancy Type and Monthly Notified Totals
In the 2024/25 financial year there were 26,082 notified vacancies
for full-time positions (66%), 11,071 notified vacancies for part-time
positions (28%) and 2,439 notified vacancies for casual positions
(6%).
Figure 7: Notified Vacancies by Vacancy Type, 2024/25
Chart
Figure 8 presents monthly vacancy statistics by vacancy type for the
financial year 2024/25. Presenting vacancies in this manner allows for
analysis of the in-year vacancy trends, which is useful information for
the labour market.
The number of vacancies notified to the Department fluctuates during
a financial year as the demand for labour increases during seasonal
peaks and decreases during off seasons.
In the 2024/25 financial year full-time vacancies peaked in March
when 2,977 were notified, with the smallest number recorded in December
(1,216).
The highest number of part-time notified vacancies were recorded in
August (1,327), while the lowest number recorded in 2024/25 was in
December with 480 notified vacancies.
The data shows that November (412) and August (83) recorded the
highest and lowest number of vacancies respectively for casual vacancies
in 2024/25.
Table
| Vacancy Type | Number of Notified Vacancies | Percentage of Notified Vacancies |
|---|---|---|
| Full-Time | 26,082 | 66% |
| Part-Time | 11,071 | 28% |
| Casual | 2,439 | 6% |
| Total | 39,592 | 100% |
Figure 8 presents monthly vacancy statistics for the financial year
2024/25. To provide a more detailed analysis, statistics have been
broken down to ‘Full-time’, ‘Part-time’ and ‘Casual’ vacancies.
Presenting vacancies in this manner allows for analysis of the in-year
vacancy trends, which is useful information for the labour
market.
The number of vacancies notified to the Department fluctuates during
a financial year as the demand for labour increases during seasonal
peaks and decreases during off seasons.
In the 2024/25 financial year full-time vacancies peaked in March
when 2,977 were notified, with the smallest number recorded in December
(1,216).
The highest number of part-time notified vacancies were recorded in
August (1,327), while the lowest number recorded in 2024/25 was in
December with 480 notified vacancies.
The data shows that November (412) and August (83) recorded the
highest and lowest number of vacancies respectively for casual vacancies
in 2024/25.
Figure 8: Monthly Notified Vacancies, 2024/25
Chart
Table
| Month | Full-time | Part-time | Casual | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Apr 2024 | 1,994 | 1,309 | 116 | 3,419 |
| May 2024 | 1,952 | 889 | 84 | 2,925 |
| Jun 2024 | 1,744 | 991 | 88 | 2,823 |
| Jul 2024 | 2,016 | 991 | 362 | 3,369 |
| Aug 2024 | 2,554 | 1,327 | 83 | 3,964 |
| Sep 2024 | 2,409 | 1,093 | 142 | 3,644 |
| Oct 2024 | 2,358 | 913 | 277 | 3,548 |
| Nov 2024 | 2,022 | 910 | 412 | 3,344 |
| Dec 2024 | 1,216 | 480 | 178 | 1,874 |
| Jan 2025 | 2,704 | 704 | 174 | 3,582 |
| Feb 2025 | 2,136 | 786 | 268 | 3,190 |
| Mar 2025 | 2,977 | 678 | 255 | 3,910 |
Notes
Background
The Department’s new vacancy taking system, JobApplyNI went live on 31 March
2022 with the aims of providing employers, jobseekers and all users with
an efficient, modern system to advertise, search and apply for
jobs.
The previous legacy vacancy management system used the Client
Management System (CMS) and two associated websites (Employers Online
and Jobseekers Online). The time series from the previous system ran
from 2014/15 due to improvements which were made to the methodology for
recording and validating data on vacancies in 2013.
The centralisation of vacancy taking services for all local offices
took place in January 2019, impacting all data from April 2019 onwards.
This process established a consistent approach to recording all employer
registrations and vacancies, including the accurate record of the number
of available positions within each vacancy registration.
This publication is the third DfC annual Statistical Bulletin
containing vacancy data from the new JobApplyNI system. The introduction
of JobApplyNI has led to further efficiencies in notifying vacancy
statistics. JobApplyNI allows for more enhanced systematic validations
(e.g. identification of rejected vacancies) and allows for presentation
of updated SOC (2020) codes and as such caution should be exercised when
comparing with data from the period 2014/15 to 2021/22.
Coverage
This bulletin presents vacancies notified to DfC. The statistics
presented do not relate to total unsatisfied demand for staff by
employers, only those vacant positions notified by employers to the
Department. Detailed total stock analysis at Northern Ireland (NI) level
is not currently available from other sources.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) produces monthly analysis of
vacancy
statistics but NI companies are not approached because of the risk
of overlap with other surveys conducted by NI Departments. Estimates for
the UK are derived by weighing up the data for Great Britain using
employment estimates (NI accounts for around 3% of UK employment). The
2021/22 financial year saw record number of UK vacancies although there
have been 33 successive monthly declines in vacancy numbers as reported
in April 2025.
A small proportion of vacancies notified to the Department are based
in other areas of the UK or in the Republic of Ireland (ROI) and are
included in the figures in this publication.
This bulletin presents the number of notified vacancies during the
last financial year (1 April 2024 - 31 March 2025) by Northern Ireland
JBOs, Local Government District 2014 (LGD 2014), Standard Occupational
Classification 2020 (SOC 2020), Standard Industrial Classification 2007
(SIC 2007), type of vacancy and by Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation
Measure (NIMDM 2017) as well as presenting trend analysis over the
ten-year period for which comparative data is available.
Further information on the methodology and definitions used in the
production of this bulletin are provided in the relevant sections
below.
Who will be interested in this bulletin?
Statistics presented within this bulletin and those derived from it
are currently used by a wide variety of stakeholders. For example, by
DfC policy officials to monitor performance and to inform future policy
decisions; by other government departments such as the Department for
the Economy (DfE) and by researchers and academics to help understand
the underlying trends in the labour market.
Limitations of data
DfC offers a free of charge vacancy placement service to employers.
The vacancy management statistics reported in this bulletin relate to
the service that was offered through the JobApplyNI digital platform
interface which allows employers and jobseekers to interact.
The relevant data are extracted from JobApplyNI each month to form a
vacancies database which is maintained by the Department’s Analytics
Division. The data presented in this Statistical Bulletin are derived
from the vacancies database.
Over time, as more information becomes available, estimates can be
revised to improve quality and accuracy, this will provide a better
picture of that being measured. Revisions are expected to be minimal and
may be due to database changes applied or to amendments to vacancies
which are live on the recent count date. These revisions are performed
in accordance with T3.9 of the UK Statistics
Authority Code of Practice for Statistics.
JobApplyNI
DfC offers services that provide support to employers and jobseekers.
JobApplyNI is the new system put in place for vacancy management.
Previously the vacancy taking service was offered primarily through the
local Jobs & Benefits Offices (JBOs), with a validation team within
Employment Services Branch (ESB). Following Universal Credit rollout in
Northern Ireland, centralisation of the vacancy taking service commenced
in January 2019 and this led to responsibility shifting from all JBOs to
ESB (impacting all data from April 2019 onwards). Since then ESB has
been the single, centralised, point of contact in DfC for uploading and
managing all vacancies for NI employers using the service.
DfC now facilitates its support for employers and jobseekers through
the JobApplyNI website (www.jobapplyni.com) in
conjunction with DfC’s network of JBOs. The Client Management System
(CMS) database previously supported the Department’s job vacancy
websites and was in place for over 20 years. A new replacement vacancy
management system launched on 31 March 2022 and it amalgamated the two
previous websites- JobCentre Online (JCOL) and Employers Online (EROL)
into one- www.jobapplyni.com.
The upgrading of the vacancy management system aims to provide
employers, jobseekers and all users with an efficient, modern system to
advertise, search and apply for jobs.
The previous vacancy management system had no mechanism to
distinguish between rejected vacancies and raised vacancies. As such
rejected vacancies were included in the total vacancy count between
2014/15 to 2021/22. JobApplyNI has such a mechanism in place so rejected
vacancies (approx. 5% of 2022/23, 2023/24 and 2024/25 totals) can be
identified and removed from total vacancies notified to DfC. Given this
distinction, caution should be exercised when comparing 2022/23 to
2024/25 data against that from previous years.
JobApplyNI has a more robust suite of in-built system validations in
place than the legacy vacancy management system. This includes a number
of in-built software quality checks which are designed to alleviate
issues with incorrect or invalid entry types.
Official Statistics
Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics
Regulation (OSR).
OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness,
quality and value in the Code of
Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics
should adhere to.
You are welcome to contact us directly with
any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can
contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR
website.
Methodology and Definitions
Vacancy details are recorded on the Department for Communities (DfC)
JobApplyNI IT system which provides an interface for employers and
jobseekers to interact.
The 2024/25 statistics presented in this bulletin are derived from
monthly data extracted from JobApplyNI which the Department’s Analytics
Division used to form a vacancy database.
Vacancies advertised by other means (e.g. newspapers, alternative
websites) are not included in the figures presented in this bulletin.
The statistics therefore do not provide comprehensive measures relating
to all vacancies available to jobseekers in Northern Ireland. The number
of vacancies which are notified by employers to DfC varies over time,
according to the occupation and industry of the vacancies and also by
geographical area.
The following notes explain the definitions underlying the data
presented in this statistical bulletin. Some vacancies could not be
allocated to categories or geographies shown but are included in the
overall total, further details are provided in the Supplementary tables
accompanying this publication.
UK Standard Occupational Classification 2020 (SOC 2020):
DfC assigns each vacancy the SOC 2020 code which best reflects the
main duties of the post. Vacancies are broken down by the nine SOC 2020
Major Group levels. Examples and information can be found in the SOC
2020 Volume 1: structure and descriptions of unit groups - Office for
National Statistics.
UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities 2007 (SIC 2007):
Employers are assigned the SIC 2007 code which best reflects their dominant activity by DfC. All vacancies are assigned the SIC 2007 code of the notifying employer. Vacancies are broken down by SIC 2007 section level. Information about SIC 2007 is available in the UK Standard Industrial Classification of Economic Activities 2007 (SIC 2007): Structure and Explanatory Notes manual.
Some employer organizations and vacancies have been reclassified from ‘Other Service Activities’ into more specific Industrial classifications from the mid-way point of the 2024/25 financial year.
Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NIMDM 2017)
The NIMDM
2017 is the official measure of deprivation in Northern Ireland and
provides a relative measure of deprivation for geographical areas. NIMDM
2017 gives an overall measure of seven types of deprivation:
- Income Deprivation
- Employment Deprivation
- Health Deprivation & Disability
- Education, Skills & Training Deprivation
- Access to Services
- Living Environment
- Crime & Disorder
Vacancy statistics are presented by Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure quintile bands: ranks 1-178 (most deprived), ranks 179-356, ranks 357-534, ranks 535-712 and ranks 713-890 (least deprived). Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure ranks are based on the Super Output Area (SOA) classification of the vacancy. SOA classifications are assigned to vacancies using the Central Postcode Directory (January 2023) based on the postcode of the employers account. When a valid employer’s account postcode is not available, the postcode of the vacancy is used. Although an employer’s account is within a particular SOA, the job may be based elsewhere in Northern Ireland, in the UK or in the Republic of Ireland.