Over 32 million people in the UK are currently employed, but in which professions do the nation face shortages?

We’ve researched job demand in the UK by the key sectors listed by the Visa Bureau. This shows where to head if you work in industries like finance, education and healthcare.

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UK Skills Demand by Region

We’ve studied key employment sectors currently in high demand in the UK. We’ve compared the averages of 12 regions and compared with the overall national demand to see who comes out on top.

Region % Above/Below Average

London 30.60%

North West 25.69%

Wales 11.70%

West Midlands 10.76%

South East 3.77%

South West 2.32%

East Midlands 2.04%

Yorkshire and the Humber -1.15%

North East & Cumbria -2.07%

East -2.33%

Scotland -7.14%

Northern Ireland -8.34%



Methodology: We took 18 of the most in demand job sectors from the UK Visa Bureau ‘UK Shortage Occupations List’. We then took both an overall UK average demand from online job sites, and a region specific average to create a ‘person per vacancy’ score.

UK Job Demand Breakdown

Find out which regions are producing the highest demand for specific jobs in our rankings below. We’ve looked at shortages across key varying industries.

Job 1 2 3 Last Financial Sector (Management Consultants, Actuaries, Economists and Statisticians)

South West (92.37%)

London (55.10%)

South East (19.81%)

Scotland (-12.19%)

Directors and CEOs

London (53.10%)

North West (50.33%)

South West (-1.52%)

North East & Cumbria (-15.52%)

Secondary Teaching

South West (132.29%)

Yorkshire and the Humber (100.27%)

London (50.10%)

Scotland (-37.33%)

Software

London (48.00%)

South West (39.37%)

South East (17.41%)

Scotland (-13.95%)

Graphic Designers

London (44.50%)

North West (-2.24%)

South West (-8.74%)

North East & Cumbria (-22.86%)

Chefs, Cooks

London (38.50%)

North West (17.42%)

South West (7.35%)

East (-25.71%)

Nurses

North West (29.58%)

London (28.90%)

Wales (1.53%)

East (-19.55%)

Social Workers

North West (48.51%)

London (24.80%)

Wales (10.85%)

Northern Ireland (-25.24%)

Mechanical Engineers

North West (24.10%)



London (15.70%) West Midlands (2.66%)

East (-28.55%)

Welding

North West (96.50%)

Wales (84.05%)

West Midlands (82.88%)

Scotland (-39.48%)



Job Demand: London vs UK

With a population of over 8.7 million, jobs are often more competitive in the UK capital. Find out how vacancies in London compare to the national average.

JOB % Above/Below National Average Finance Sector (Management Consultants, Actuaries, Economists and Statisticians)

55.1%

Directors and CEOs

53.1%

Secondary Teaching

50.1%

Software

48.0%

Graphic Design

44.5%

Chefs, Cooks

38.5%

Nurses

28.9%

Social Workers

24.8%

Mechanical Engineers

15.7%

Welding Trades

-21.9%



Job Shortages: Healthcare Industry Breakdown

The health sector is an invaluable part of UK society, but faces high demand like many other industries. From social workers to radiographers, look below to find the regions where the highest demand sits.

MEDICAL PROFFESSION London 9.68 North West 9.18 Wales 8.18 West Midlands 7.82 South East 7.31 South West 6.76 Scotland 5.43 East Midlands 5.39 North East & Cumbria 5.06 Yorkshire and the Humber 3.56 East 3.27 Northern Ireland 2.39

Sources:

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