The claimant count increased to 1.64 million in January, the worst figure since April 1997.
Long-term unemployment, covering those out of work for more than a year, increased by 37,000 in the quarter to December to 663,000, also the highest figure since 1997.
The number of people classed as economically inactive reached a record high of 8.08 million, more than 21% of the working age population.
The figure covers students, people looking after a sick relative, or those who have given up looking for work, with records dating back to 1971.
Unemployment in the latest quarter fell by 3,000 to 2.46 million, giving a jobless rate of 7.8%, unchanged from the previous three months.
Other data from the Office for National Statistics showed that the number of people in employment fell by 12,000 to just under 29 million.
There was a drop of 37,000 in full-time employment, offset by a 25,000 increase in part-time employment.
Unemployment among 18- to 24-year-olds fell by 13,000 in the last three months of 2009 to 725,000, while for 16 to 24-year-olds the total dropped by 13,000 to 923,000.
There was an 18,000 rise in the number of unemployed women to 959,000, the biggest quarterly rise since last summer.
Average pay was £451 a week in December, a rise of 0.8% over the year, while excluding bonuses the figure was £425, an increase of 1.2%, the joint lowest since records began.
The number of job vacancies in the three months to January increased by 49,000 to 479,000.
There was a 23,000 rise in public sector employment in the quarter to last September to 6.09 million, while private sector employment was up by 15,000 to 22.8 million.
The number of jobs in the UK fell by 127,000 to 30 million in the quarter to September, with construction showing the biggest decrease.
Unemployment in the regions between October and December was:
Region Total Change Unemployment
North East 117,000 no change 9.3%
North West 289,000 minus 4,000 8.5%
Yorkshire/Humber 240,000 plus 11,000 9.1%
East Midlands 167,000 minus 5,000 7.2%
West Midlands 252,000 minus 16,0009.4%
East 194,000 plus 1,000 6.5%
London 373,000 plus 3,000 9.1%
South East 276,000 plus 12,000 6.2%
South West 172,000 minus 3,000 6.4%
Wales 122,000 minus 2,000 8.6%
Scotland 206,000 plus 10,000 7.6%
Northern Ireland 49,000 minus 8,000 6.0%
The Government welcomed the fall in unemployment and youth unemployment, but said the overall figures also showed that continued support was needed to secure the recovery.
Ministers warned that further rises in unemployment were expected before the summer, and announced more help to get people back to work.
Work and Pensions Secretary Yvette Cooper said: "These figures show how important it is to keep increasing not cutting back on the help for people to get work.
"Unemployment is much lower than expected last year, reflecting the tough decisions families and businesses have taken to protect jobs, as well as the substantial extra investment in getting people back to work.
"But we know things are going to be tough for a while and we expect further increases in unemployment before the summer. That's why it's so important to increase help for people now, not cut it back."
Employment Minister Jim Knight said: "It's good news that, despite the worst recession since the 1930s, we have helped half a million people back to work through Jobcentre Plus' flagship Local Employment Partnership scheme.
"Today we are also announcing the seventh round of winning Future Jobs Fund bidders which will create almost 6,000 more jobs for young people, bringing the total to almost 110,000."
Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB union, said: "The recession is far from over for employment as the recent large- scale job losses at Shop Direct, Corus Teeside and Birmingham City Council show.
"It will be a long, hard slog to emerge from this bankers' recession. How to support economic recovery will be a central election issue.
"Those who now advocate austerity for public spending are the very people who brought the economy to its knees. This would make things far worse."
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