West Midlands Job Market

There are many job markets across the West Midlands. You can find specific information on these areas:

Birmingham

Business and professional services is the largest employment sector in the area (over 206,000 employee jobs) with a local specialism in financial services and activities of head offices and management consultancy. There are also clusters of employment in legal, accounting and employment services in Birmingham and in managed building and landscaping services in Solihull.

The construction of the high-speed line HS2 is one of the largest infrastructure projects in the UK with over £1.7 billion worth of contracts already awarded to West Midlands businesses. Hundreds of people have gained new skills and qualifications and over 8,800 local people are working on HS2. The expansion of the Midland Metro Tram Network from Birmingham City Centre through East Birmingham to North Solihull and UK Central will further improve the area’s transport network and maximise the economic opportunities created by HS2.

Birmingham and Solihull have also strengths in advanced engineering, digital technologies, fintech and health tech with those sectors expected to grow and offer new employment opportunities.

Birmingham

265,000 residents or over a quarter of employee jobs in Birmingham (26.5%) are in business and professional services – including administration & business support, professional & technical services, finance & insurance, and information and communications technology.

  • Birmingham is home to many legal, accounting and consulting firms. The Big Four – PwC, Deloitte, EY and KPMG – have offices in the city and run competitive graduate and apprenticeship programmes.
  • A significant number of international and national businesses also have their head offices or regional offices in the city providing a range of administrative and business support functions.
  • The city has the largest regional financial services hub in England, employing around 24,000 people in over 565 companies including the UK headquarters of HSBC.

In addition, health and social care accounts for over 145,000 jobs in the city or over 14.5% of employment. Other key employment sectors include retail and wholesale (140,000 employee jobs), education (84,000 jobs) and food, beverage and accommodation services (71,000 jobs).

A wide range of hospitals, universities and colleges mean that Birmingham has many public sector jobs. The NHS, the University of Birmingham and Birmingham City Council remain some of the largest public sector employers.

Birmingham hosts a cultural and creative industries cluster with strengths in performance – theatre, dance and music, screen and content creation, games, e-sports, design and marketing. The BBC has a strong base in the city.

There is a high concentration of jobs in administration and business support services in Solihull. Administration and business support represent the largest employment sector accounting for 29,000 employee jobs or one in five jobs (20%) compared to a national average of 8.5%. In particular there is a large employment cluster in facilities management and landscaping activities (proportionally 5 times more jobs in this sub-sector within Solihull than nationally).

Other key employment sectors include retail and wholesale (16,000 employee jobs), manufacturing (15,000 jobs), health and social care (11,000 jobs), professional and technical services (11,000 jobs), and transport and warehousing (11,000 jobs).

80% of jobs in the manufacturing sector can be found in automotive (12,000 employee jobs) with Jaguar Land Rover employing around 9,000 people at its Solihull production plant while a further 3,000 jobs can be found in its supply chain.

There is also a large proportion of employment in transport and warehousing in Solihull due to the presence of Birmingham Airport and the location of warehousing and support services within its vicinity.

Other large employers include the NHS, Solihull Metropolitan Borough Council, the National Exhibition Centre (NEC), Paragon Banking Group and BNP Paribas.

Black Country

Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton make up the Black Country.
The largest employment sectors in the Black Country area include:

  1. Administration, business support, ICT, financial and professional services (117,000 jobs)
  2. Retail and wholesale (95,000 jobs)
  3. Health and social care (90,000 jobs)
  4. Manufacturing (69,000 jobs)
  1. Administration, business and professional services is the largest employment sector in the Black Country and is set to grow over the next ten years. Employers in this sector are looking for people with a range of skills including advanced digital skills, communications, leadership and management skills.
  2. Retail and wholesale remains a large employment sector with supermarkets, wholesalers and distributors, and car dealerships accounting for the largest share of jobs. Merry Hill is a key shopping destination but the area has also benefited from government funding to regenerate the high street. There is growing demand for digital skills across all roles.
  3. Health and social care represents one of the largest employment sectors in the Black Country with 90,000 people working across local hospitals, social care services and residential care homes. There are many job opportunities in the sector as nurses, social workers, care workers, care managers and roles in patient care are all in high demand.
  4. The Black Country has a strong manufacturing base with over 4,000 engineering and manufacturing businesses. It is home to industrial clusters specialised in motor vehicle, aerospace, metal fabrication, advanced materials and plastics. Metal production and maintenance fitters, design and development engineers, and maintenance engineers are in high demand.

Other sectors of significance include education, transport and warehousing, hospitality and the visitor economy.

Dudley

21,000 people are employed in retail & wholesale, which is the largest employment sector accounting for around 1 in 5 jobs in the area. Employment is highly concentrated in Merry Hill, the largest shopping centre in the Midlands and the 8th largest in the UK spanning more than 1.4 million square feet of retail, hospitality and leisure. It is home to over 200 of the UK’s leading brands and independent stores.

Health & social care is the second largest employment sector in Dudley accounting for 20,000 jobs or almost 19% of employment compared to 14% nationally.

The manufacturing sector remains a distinctive and important part of the local economy accounting for 13,000 employee jobs and over 12% of employment (compared to a national average of around 7%).

Dudley also relies substantially on its service-based economy with almost 15,000 jobs in administration & business support, professional and technical services, ICT, finance and insurance services.

Tourism is helping to support over 4,000 jobs in the visitor economy with the borough hosting some key cultural assets and visitor sites including the Black Country Living Museum, Dudley Castle and Zoo, Dudley Canal Trust, Red House Glass Cone and the UNESCO Black Country Geopark.

Most of the economic activity in Sandwell is clustered around Oldbury, West Bromwich, and Smethwick.

Retail & wholesale is the largest employment sector (23,000 employees), followed by health & social care (20,000 employees).

In addition, Sandwell has a strong manufacturing heritage with the sector accounting for 18,000 employee jobs or 14% of local employment (twice the national average).

  • Key sector strengths include the production of rubber, plastics and metals. Sandwell businesses produce materials used in modern machinery and equipment and in sectors such as automotive and aerospace. Proportionally there are 5 times more jobs in the production of metals and metal products in Sandwell than the UK average.
  • Food and beverage production is another key subsector in Sandwell and is particularly concentrated around West Bromwich with employers including East End Foods – suppliers of Asian food to independent grocery stores and major supermarkets.

Sandwell has a strong transport and logistics sector, which accounts for 11,00 employee jobs or almost 9% of employment in the area, significantly higher than the national average (5%). Employment is spread across freight, road transport, warehousing, postal and courier services. One of the largest national bus operators, Rotala has its headquarters in Oldbury while the UK head office of the international parcel company DPD is located in Smethwick.

Retail & wholesale is the largest employment sector in Walsall employing 17,000 people or 17% of employees in the area. Poundland and A. F. Blakemore’s headquarters are both based in Walsall. A. F. Blakemore owns Blakemore Wholesale and Spar UK which manages 265 SPAR stores in England and Wales.

Health and social care is the second largest employment sector employing 15,000 people across the borough.

Employment in Walsall is then equally distributed across the education sector, manufacturing, transport and storage (10,000 employee jobs each).

Building on its industrial heritage, Wallsall has retained its strengths in the production of basic and fabricated metals. The area is also home to a range of manufacturing and engineering businesses with specialisms in plastics, machinery, automotive and food. Key manufacturing employers include Assa Abloy and Babcock International.

Employment in Walsall is also highly concentrated in transport and warehousing, which represents 10,000 employee jobs or 10% of employment (twice the national average). The sector plays a major role in the local economy, supporting other industries such as manufacturing, retail and wholesale.

Around 24,000 people are employed in Wolverhampton’s health and social care sector, making it the largest employment sector in the city (1 jobs in 5 are in health and social care). With more than 11,000 staff working at the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, it is the city’s largest employer. Employment is especially concentrated in hospital services at New Cross Hospital with private healthcare providers such as Nuffield and Cygnet Healthcare also present in the city.

Retail and wholesale is the second largest employment sector accounting for 18,000 employee jobs or 16% of local employment. Main employers include supermarkets, car dealerships, automotive distributor GSF Car Parts and retailer Big Phone Store.


Wolverhampton has a strong manufacturing sector with concentration of employment in the automotive sector and the production of fabricated metal products for the defence and aerospace industries. The city is home to a cluster of engineering and advanced manufacturing businesses including Marston/Collins Aerospace, Safran, Moog, Eurofins and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR).

11,000 employee jobs can be found in the education sector. The University of Wolverhampton is a national hub of excellence for construction and the built environment. It hosts the National Brownfield Institute that support remediation and the construction of new housing on brownfield sites.

Worcestershire

Worcestershire

The largest employment sector in Worcestershire is retail and wholesale (43,000 employee jobs) followed by health and social care (36,000 jobs). Job opportunities in health and social care are mostly concentrated in Worcester, which accounts for over one third of all sector jobs in the county.

Manufacturing is the third largest employment sector with around 30,000 employee jobs. Those jobs are strongly clustered in the North-East in Redditch and Wychavon, where the sector accounts for two times more jobs than the national average. Specialisms including food production, fabricated metals, motor vehicles and parts, and machinery and equipment. The county has a significant automotive supply chain linking with Jaguar Land Rover and other first tier car manufacturers.

The county is a popular tourist destination attracting millions of visitors every year. There are also over 2,100 businesses within the tourism and leisure sector in Worcestershire. Over 20,000 people work in hospitality (accommodation and food services) and 7,000 people work in arts, entertainment and recreation services.
There is also a wide range of job opportunities in education (22,000 employee jobs), administrative and support services (20,000 employee jobs), and professional & technical services (17,000 jobs). Over a quarter of job opportunities in administrative and support services are concentrated in Bromsgrove.
High growth sectors include advanced manufacturing, cyber security and defence, and agri-foods.
Worcestershire is at the centre of a regional network widely known as the ‘Cyber Valley’. This is due to its proximity to important cyber security institutions such GCHQ and the SAS (the UK’s Special Armed Services) and to the density and range of cyber security firms located in the area. Malvern Hills Science Park is home to a cluster of growing companies working to strengthen the UK response to cyber-attacks.

Worcestershire is also home to many successful businesses focused on agriculture, horticulture and food production. Wychavon – especially the Vale of Evesham – Teme Valley and the Malvern Hills are sector hotspots. Employment is mostly concentrated in:

  • processing and preserving fruit and vegetables
  • dairy product manufacture
  • fish and seafood processing
  • production of raw materials, grain mill products and starch products.

The Agri-Tech Research Centre at Pershore College is a key research and development facility for the sector

Coventry and Warwickshire

Coventry and Warwickshire are home to some of the biggest names in the automotive, energy and financial services sectors. Many jobs can be also found in the area’s world-class R&D facilities, universities and science parks.

Coventry and Warwickshire is a leading UK automotive centre. There are several international companies based in the area including Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), BMW, General Electric, and Aston Martin Lagonda, supported by a well-established advanced manufacturing and engineering sector that employs around 63,000 people. The sector is being transformed by technological innovations.
Research and development in the area of smart mobility, driverless technology, electric vehicles and low carbon technologies is creating many new job opportunities. The University of Warwick is a key local employer and technology incubator in the area.
Financial, business and professional services is one of the largest employment sectors in Coventry and Warwickshire (over 91,000 jobs). The area is home to the head offices of many large businesses; these range from food retail (Aldi) to energy (National Grid), financial services (Coventry Building Society) and insurance (NFU Mutual).

Over 123,000 people across Coventry and Warwickshire work in public services, education and health & social care (that’s over 25% of the workforce).

There is a well-established ICT sector driven by the gaming and creative industries. The gaming cluster is centred around the towns of Leamington Spa, Warwick and Southam (sometimes called ‘Silicon Spa’).

Coventry

Health and social care is the largest employment sector in Coventry with 25,000 employee jobs.

The city has also a very strong education sector which employs a relatively large number of residents (24,000 jobs or 15% of employment compared to 8.56% in England) with larger employers including Coventry University and Coventry College.

17,500 jobs can be found in administrative and business support services in Coventry with high concentration of jobs in employment/recruitment services, office administration and support, and managed building and landscaping services.

Coventry is home to the head offices of many large businesses including Coventry Building Society, Jaguar Land Rover, Severn Trent Water, with E.ON and BAE Systems also having a regional office in the city.

Coventry’s manufacturing and engineering services employ over 18,000 people with a very large concentration of employment in automotive – including JLR’s headquarters – and to a lesser extent in fabricated metal, food manufacture and the production of rubber and plastic products.

Transport, logistics and warehousing account for 11,000 job opportunities with employment mostly concentrated in warehousing and land freight transport.

Coventry was named the UK’s City of Culture 2021 which has led to increased investment in the local arts, cultural and entertainment sector, and has helped the sector as well as closely related tourism and hospitality sectors to develop. Continued public investments in arts and culture are supporting employment opportunities in these sectors.

Retail and wholesale is the largest employment sector in Warwickshire accounting for 50,000 employee jobs.

Professional, technical and scientific services are the second largest sector providing 41,000 employee jobs in the area with employment mostly localised in Stratford-on-Avon (16,000 jobs) and Warwick (10,000 jobs).

  • Employment is especially concentrated in activities of head offices and management consultancies. The area is home to the head offices of many large businesses ranging from food retail (Aldi in Atherstone) to energy (National Grid, Warwick) and insurance (NFU Mutual in Stratford).
  • Other key specialisms include engineering services (16,000 employee jobs) and scientific and technical services (4,500 jobs). Employment in engineering services is heavily clustered around Strafford-on-Avon (11,000 jobs).

The visitor economy, which includes hospitality services, arts, entertainment and recreation, represents 34,000 employee jobs mostly localised in Stratford-on-Avon and Warwick. Food and beverages services are the largest sub-sector with 21,000 jobs.

Health and social care account for 33,000 jobs with employment centred around Warwick (12,000 employee jobs) and Nuneaton (8,000 jobs). The NHS is the largest employer in this sector.

Employment in manufacturing is progressively declining with the adoption of advanced manufacturing processes and advances in automation and robotics. However, the sector is still a significant pillar of the local economy accounting for 30,000 employee jobs.

  • Large employers in the sector include Jaguar Lander Rover (JLR) in Gaydon and GE Vernova in Rugby that develops advanced motor, generator, drive and control technologies for the marine, oil & gas, metals, mining and renewable industries.
  • There is a large cluster of automotive suppliers with over 9,000 jobs in the sector and many more in supporting industries including fabricated metals (5,000 jobs) and engineering services (16,000 jobs). JLR’s headquarters and its design, research and development centre are based in Gaydon, Aston Martin’s headquarters are also based in Gaydon while BMW’s manufacturing Hams Hall plant is in North Warwickshire.

Transport and storage account for 28,000 jobs or 8.5% of employment, which is higher than the national average (5%). Employment in the sector is highly concentrated in North Warwickshire (12,000 jobs) and Rugby (7,000 jobs).

More than 114,000 people across Coventry and Warwickshire work in public services, education and health and social care (that’s nearly 25% of the workforce).

Warwickshire has a well-established ICT sector accounting for 14,000 employee jobs and driven by high-growth gaming and creative industries. Based in Warwick, Telent Technology is a key employer in this sector. The gaming cluster is centred around the towns of Leamington Spa, Warwick and Southam.

Shaw Trust delivers the National Careers Service as a prime contractor in the West Midlands and London, and on behalf of EDT in South Yorkshire. National Careers Service is funded by the Department for Education.

Stoke-on-Trent and Staffordshire

Stoke-on-Trent

The largest employment sector is health and social care accounting for 28,000 employee jobs or over 22% of employment – compared to only 14% nationally. Healthcare, especially hospital services, accounts for the greatest share of employment in Stoke-on-Trent with the NHS being the largest local employer.

Retail and wholesale is the second largest sector with 18,000 employee jobs, followed by manufacturing (13,000 jobs)* and transport and storage (12,000 jobs)*.
Stoke-on-Trent is home to growing digital and creative clusters.

  • Stoke-on-Trent hosts a relatively large creative industry with 6,000 people employed in art, entertainment and recreation services (almost 5% of employment which is double the national average) with many more people working in digital and creative sectors. The city is home to several cultural assets such as the Potteries Museum & Art Gallery. The creative sector also encompasses video games and animation, content production and digital learning, marketing and advertising.

Stoke-on-Trent’s manufacturing sector has remained thriving thanks to its diversified industrial base.

The city is home to a well-established industrial cluster focused on advanced materials including ceramics and fabricated metals but other significant industry clusters include robotics and autonomous systems; engineering services; automotive, aerospace and rail; machinery and equipment; biomolecular science; health tech and fintech.

Stoke-on-Trent’s transport and warehousing sector is relatively large, accounting for almost 10% of employment in the city, double the national average. The sector has been growing in the last ten years.
Growth has been driven by the development of the Ceramic Valley Enterprise Zone and adjoining industrial sites and by the strategic advantage of the city’s location – at the crossroads of the M6 (north-south) motorway and A50 (east-west) trunk road. Logistics businesses in the city benefit from lower overheads and a location within approximately one hour’s drive of six large cities, three airports and the docks at Liverpool and Birkenhead.

Retail and wholesale are the largest industry sector in Staffordshire accounting for 60,000 employee jobs. Employment in the sector (17%) is higher than national average (13.7%) with a relatively large wholesale sector (5.9% of employment compared to 3.8% in England).

Health and social care are the second largest employment sector in the county representing over 46,000 employee jobs.

Manufacturing is the third largest employment sector with 38,000 employee jobs. It accounts for almost 11% of employment, which is much higher than the national average of 7.3%. Employment is mostly concentrated in the production of machinery and equipment (6,000 employee jobs), fabricated metals (5,000 jobs), automotive parts (4,000 jobs) and food products (4,000 jobs). Staffordshire has a high-value advanced manufacturing base with significant strengths in automotive and fabricated metal, machinery and equipment, and medical technologies.

The visitor economy employs around 38,000 people across the county, with beverage and food services accounting for the largest share of jobs. Staffordshire’s natural assets such the Cannock Chase Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and Peak District National Park, alongside numerous attractions including Alton Towers and Drayton Manor theme parks, have supported tourism. The brewing industry in Burton upon Trent is also one of its most historic and notable local assets.

Overall Staffordshire’s economy is well balanced with a similar number of jobs across the education sector, administration and support services, hospitality, and transport and warehousing.

 The A50/A500 corridor plays a central role in the Staffordshire economy with many businesses heavily depending on the A50/A500 road for their supply chain and effective connections to international markets.

The county has an important transport and warehousing cluster with particular strength in warehousing and transportation support services, which employ over 17,000 people and accounts for 4.8% of employment more than twice the national average (2.3% in England).

The Marches

Herefordshire

Herefordshire is mainly a rural county with large areas of picturesque and relatively unspoilt countryside. In addition to Hereford city, there are five historic market towns – Bromyard, Kington, Ledbury, Leominster and Ross-on-Wye.

 Self-employment is high and jobs are strongly concentrated in Hereford and to a lesser extent in the five market towns of the county.

Key employment sectors include:

  • Land-based industries
  • Retail and wholesale
  • Health and social care
  • Manufacturing
  • Defence and security
  • Visitor economy

Herefordshire is under-represented in private sector services such as finance and insurance, administration and business support, and professional, scientific and technical services.

Land-based industries 

8,000 people are employed in Herefordshire’s large agriculture and food production sector, which ranges from high-tech and large-scale production through to artisanal, niche producers. The main employment hotspot is Hereford but another smaller food and drink cluster can be found near Bromyard.
Retail and wholesale is the largest industry sector in Herefordshire accounting for 14,000 employee jobs. Employment in the sector (17.9%) is higher than national average (13.7%).

Health and social care

Due to a rising number of people living longer with more complex and longer-term conditions, there is a higher demand for services and for people to work in health and social care, which is the second largest employment sector accounting for 12,000 employee jobs.

 Manufacturing

Other key employment sectors in Herefordshire include manufacturing (11,000 employee jobs), defence and security, hospitality and tourism. Employment in manufacturing is strongly concentrated in the production of food and beverage (3,500 employee jobs), and plastic and metal products (3,000 employee jobs).

Defence and security

Herefordshire is part of Cyber Valley, a strategic defence, security and technology arc running from GCHQ Cheltenham to Hereford and in Malvern. There is a cluster of cyber and technology businesses in the south of the county and Cyber Quarter at Skylon Park is linked to an established and internationally recognised defence and security sector. Skylon Park in Herefordshire is the only UK enterprise zone with a focus on defence and security. It is home to the Cyber Quarter – Midlands Centre for Cyber Security, which offers security testing, training, R&D and sector expertise to businesses and investors.

Visitor economy
The visitor economy employs around 9,000 people across the county, with beverage and food services accounting for the largest share of jobs. Hereford account for the largest share of hospitality, art, entertainment and recreation jobs.

Shropshire is primarily a rural county. Employment is mostly concentrated in Shrewsbury and the five market towns of Oswestry, Market Drayton, Whitchurch, Bridgnorth and Ludlow. There are relatively few large employers in Shropshire. Self-employment is high in the county, and a significant number of people work from home or run their businesses from home.

Key employment sectors include:

  • Land-based industries
  • Health and social care
  • Retail and wholesale
  • Manufacturing
  • Visitor economy

Shropshire is under-represented in private sector services such as finance and insurance, administration and business support, and professional, scientific and technical services.

Land-based industries
8,500 people are employed in Shropshire’s large agriculture and food production sector. The county is home to specialised industry clusters in dairy, meat processing, micro-breweries, and bakeries with a range of international, national and regional artisan brands.

Shropshire also hosts Harper Adams University, a world leader in agri-tech research and the largest specialist land-based institution in the UK. Its Regional Food Academy provides training, education, knowledge transfer and technical consultancy support to the region’s food and drink industry.

Health and social care
Health and social care are the largest sector in Shropshire accounting for 25,000 employee jobs or 19.7% of employment, which is much higher than national average (GB 14.2%).

Shropshire is leading the way in looking at data-driven health tech solutions to address health and care needs and reach people in disparate communities. Technology companies are involved in the development of new digital health tools. There is a focus on projects which will provide solutions to address housing shortages, caring for an aging population and ensuring vital services have access to reliable and sustainable sources of energy.

Shropshire is home to the Robert Jones and Agnes Hunt Orthopaedic hospital (RJAH), a national centre of excellence for orthopaedic and spinal surgery, life sciences, clinical research trials and projects. Also, Digital Solutions at the University Centre Shrewsbury offers support to SMEs to bring their health-related innovations and products to market.

Retail and wholesale
Retail and wholesale are the second largest industry sector in the county accounting for 21,000 employee jobs. Employment is mostly concentrated in Shrewsbury with smaller number of jobs in other market towns.

Manufacturing
There are over 12,000 people working in the manufacturing sector across Shropshire. The main industry cluster is food and drink production followed by manufacture of metals and fabricated metal products, and machinery and equipment. The area is home to an emerging cluster of Tier 1 and Tier 2 automotive and precision engineering companies.

Advanced manufacturing is supported by InComm Telford (formerly the Marches Centre of Manufacturing Technology), an employer-led initiative to bridge the skills gap by creating industry-ready apprenticeships and offering over 1,000 upskilling courses in a range of engineering, leadership and management, quality, safety and compliance.

Food and drink production accounts for over a third of manufacturing employment in Shropshire with 4,500 individuals employed in the industry. More than half the people employed in food manufacture are employed in the processing and preserving of meat and the production of meat and poultry meat products.

Visitor Economy
Over 15,000 people are employed in hospitality and the visitor economy across Shropshire with largest concentration of opportunities in Shrewsbury, Church Stretton, Ludlow, Bridgnorth and Bishops Castle. The bulk of jobs is in food and drink services (10,000 employee jobs).

Shropshire counts approximately 435 restaurants and 350 cafes and pubs, 100 B&Bs and guesthouses and 50 hotels including 12 country house hotels and multiple Premier Inn, Travelodge and Holiday Inn budget hotels.

Shropshire’s visitor economy capitalises on heritage and cultural sites and on the rural landscape including forests and areas of outstanding natural beauty such as the Shropshire Hills. The tourism industry encompasses a range of countryside, family and sport activities supported by festivals and events like the Shropshire Folk Festival and the Ludlow Food Festival.

Employment in the district is heavily clustered in the town of Telford.

Telford benefits from a strong manufacturing, engineering and agricultural history and a large international business community with around 200 foreign-owned companies.

Over half of employment is concentrated in four sectors:

  • Retail and wholesale
  • Manufacturing
  • Administration and support services
  • Health and social care

In addition, there is a relative high concentration of jobs in warehousing and transportation support services and in computer programming and consultancy services with Capgemini and Fujitsu employing a significant number of staff in the area.

Retail and wholesale

Retail and wholesale is the largest industry sector accounting for 15,000 employee jobs mostly located in Telford. Employment in the sector is relatively higher (16.5%) than the national average (GB 13.7%). Employers include high-street shops, independent retailers, supermarkets, and a range of wholesalers and distributors.

Manufacturing

Manufacturing is the second largest employment sector with 14,000 employee jobs. It accounts over 15% of employment, which is more than double the national average (GB – 7.3%). Telford has an established reputation for advanced manufacturing with strengths in many diverse industries such as automotive, aerospace, defence; food production and agri-tech.

Employment is mostly found in the manufacture of motor vehicles and parts, metal and fabricated metal products, plastic products, machinery and equipment and food products.

Ni.PARK, the employment park to the south of Newport has been recognised as a national high potential opportunity for agri-tech. Further expansion of the park is underway and Harper Adams University is investing in a new research/education hub on site. The facility will support start-up businesses and existing agri-tech businesses with research and development.

Administration and support services is the third largest employment sector in the county representing over 10,000 employee jobs.

Health and social care
Due to a rising number of people living longer with more complex and longer-term conditions, there is a higher demand for services and for people to work in health and social care, which is the second largest employment sector accounting for 10,000 employee jobs.