The Office of National Statistics shows unemployment increased by 220,000 in the three months to June 2009, and was up 750,000 from the same time last year.
The UK's unemployment rate is now 7.8%, up 0.7 percentage points from the last quarter.
The number of people who have been unemployed for a year or more has reached 543,000, up 36,000 from the three months to March.
Unemployment is especially prevalent among 18-24 year olds, where the figure stands at 942,000.
Commenting on the findings, Samantha Weston, head of resourcing at Grant Thornton, said: "The figures show an unrelenting rise in the number of unemployed 18-24 year olds. The Government's recent response, to further increase investment in internships through the Graduate Talent Pool and to provide funding for a gap year scheme, will provide benefit to some but the impact of the recession and the record number of students graduating this year will be a continuing concern for the Government.
"Internships are a great way to gain practical work experience and can lead to the offer of permanent work. If graduates are considering volunteering overseas to boost their employability they need to ensure they come back with demonstrable skills. Graduates should look for projects where they will have the opportunity to gain leadership and team-working skills and not just have an extended holiday."
In the three months to June, the working age employment rate was 72.7%, or 28.93 million. This is 573,000 less than the same time in 2008.
