Engineering careers in England & Heatmap

There are no guarantees in the job market. Consumer behaviour, changes in policies and economic crises can easily crush jobs usually perceived as secure.  We are going to monitor levels of Engineering Careers across the counties of England every quarter and bring the findings to you. 

Making predictions will always hold a level of uncertainty when it comes to job trends. Engineering careers are no different. We have put together a heat-map showing search results from a Premium Online Job Board* sourced on Tuesday 11th December 2018. We kept the terms simple by choosing the category “Engineering” and narrowing this down to each county. 

Download PDF Map here

Engineering Careers Advertised vs Population 

Assuming a county with a larger population has more jobs advertised makes sense. This month (December 2018) it is not the case. We must also take into consideration that specific regions and parts of the country lack the industrial landscape required to produce a high volume of engineering jobs. Merseyside, with a population of approx 1.4million, had just 287 engineering careers on the chosen job board. Compared to Bristol whose population sits around 430,000 and is host to 586 live jobs. 

The Highs and Lows

It comes as no surprise the most heavily populated county of Greater London holds more engineering related jobs than any other. Boasting upwards of eight million residents, London is home to 3103 advertised vacancies in the engineering sector. Please note that this includes head office, administration and similar roles that are based in the capital. We may have to do some further digging into what percentage of this figure consists of hands on engineering roles. 

Here we go again! Another lack of surprise comes with Rutland (England’s smallest county) holding the least amount of advertised engineering vacancies. Sporting just a handful of jobs, 23 in total, we would not advise moving here should you wish to pursue a career in the sector. However, if you are into the scenic waters of Rutland reservoir, small town living and the country life, this is the place for you! 

Top five

1. London – 3,103 advertised careers in the sector
2. Yorkshire – 2,471 advertised careers in the sector
3. Hampshire – 1,243 advertised careers in the sector
4. Greater Manchester – 1,176 advertised careers in the sector
5. Hertfordshire – 944 advertised careers in the sector 

Lowest five

1. Rutland – 23 advertised careers in the sector
2. Northumberland – 66 advertised careers in the sector
3. Isle of Wight – 101 advertised careers in the sector
4. Cornwall – 136 advertised careers in the sector
5. Herefordshire – 139 advertised careers in the sector 

What does the sector have to offer?

If you are looking to get into a career in engineering you can expect:

• continuous professional development opportunities allowing you to work your way through a number of promotions.
• an average starting salary upwards of £25,000 (according to Engineering UK), compared to the average starting salary for graduates of approx £21,000.
• to utilise their creativity whilst developing problem-solving skills to produce innovative products, tackle new challenges and solve some of the world’s technical problems.

What can we expect in three months? 

In the Spring of 2019 we will conduct the same searches and compile the results. We can then compare live job levels within the sector at a different time of year. Hopefully we will see a dramatic increase based on a slowing down of the job market in the UK throughout the build up to Christmas. 

Speaking to Dale King, a Senior Engineering Recruitment Consultant with over ten years in the field we asked for his predictions. 

Typically we would expect the market to slow down during the build up to Christmas and the new year. Is this the case?

Yes, most definitely. December is a quiet month recruitment wise. A trend that has not changed over my ten years in recruitment.

Between now and the end of March, where do you expect the market to peak?

From my experience the momentum picks up through January. This continues through February and levels out in March.

Are these trends apparent year on year or have there been drastic changes and exceptions?

I must admit it has been very apparent year on year. Although I have noticed a real drop in candidate applications on the whole.

Would you recommend employers to start looking prior to Christmas or in the new year?

HR staff always find December a busy month on non-recruitment related tasks. I would recommend a push in the middle of January once Christmas is out of everyone’s system.

Finally, what kind of increase or decrease should we expect to see in Norfolk and Suffolk engineering careers advertised online by the end of March 2019?

I think the level of advertising will remain the same as companies fight it out for skilled staff. As mentioned the level of applications has fallen so the need for experienced recruiters will still be there.

Summary

As this is our first article of it’s kind we cannot provide evidence of shifts in the market. However based on Dale’s responses to our questions it is almost inevitable that we will see a spike during the first quarter of 2019. As mentioned the need for staff is always there but with other priorities for businesses, staff and candidates at this time of year it is difficult to truly push. 

With the end of the first quarter being the final period of the financial year companies have been known to use up the remainder of their hiring budgets. This contributes towards building a talent pool for future roles even if they’re not taking on key members of staff at that time. 

If you are looking to get into the engineering sector our career advice section may be of use and can be seen by clicking here. Alternatively if you have what it takes in the form of qualifications and experience you can browse our jobs here.