Jobs in Coventry | Pictures of Coventry

Coventry is going through possibly the biggest regeneration programme ever witnessed in the UK since the end of the Second World War. £9.3bn is being invested in the local economy on new housing and leisure facilities as well as purpose-built business and retail developments.
Coventry is growing exponentially and fast-becoming the world class city it has always looked to become.

Then and now
Throughout the Middle Ages, Coventry grew as a leading centre in the textile trade whose importance saw it become one of the first recognised cities in England. Soon after the Industrial Revolution swept through the Midlands at unstoppable pace, Coventry found itself as one of the three main centres of watch and clock manufacture in the UK.

But increased competition from Swiss clock and watch manufacturers sealed the fate of the industry and Coventry was forced to find a new role. As prolific as they were in watch manufacturing, Coventry quickly became a major centre of the British motor industry and eventually the machine tool and aircraft industries.

From Rover kick-starting it all initially as a major centre of bicycle manufacture, motor manufacturing soon followed. And with it, the emergence of a growing number of familiar names, including Daimler and the Triumph motorcycle.

Coventry’s industrial importance made it the target of the most extreme German bombing campaign of World War Two when Coventry was quite literally flattened during a single 24-hour blitz – an event which saw the city twin with Stalingrad and, in a gesture of reconciliation in the post-war aftermath, Dresden.

With the exception of the famous black cab being the only vehicles still wholly built in Coventry, the cessation of car production in 2006 has not severed all ties that Coventry has with the automotive industry. Indeed, Coventry has capitalised on its automotive heritage and repositioned itself as the leading centre in the UK for concept development, R&D, testing, feasibility, design, manufacture, distribution and sales function with Jaguar Cars having its R&D arm firmly based here, employing over 2,000 people.

The new £70 million International Automotive Research Centre (IARC) at Warwick University helps companies improve product development through research and development, and skills training. And the University of Warwick and Coventry University have a higher number of students studying transport technology related subjects than anywhere else in the country, with more than 5,000 students - 14% of the city's 35,000 university student population.

The aerospace industry grew as a consequence of the motor industry and turnover within this sector is anticipated to more than double within the next ten years, thereby creating more jobs in the area. As it stands, the aerospace industry has over 100 companies employing some 5,000 sector dedicated personnel with an annual turnover of £750m with the likes of Rolls Royce PLC, Dunlop Meggitt, Chinn Aerospace and Blanc Aero Industries based in Coventry.

In recent years, the city has followed the national trend of moving away from manufacturing industries towards the service sector. And the public sector is head and shoulders above any other sector when it comes to employment opportunities in Coventry.

Being the administrative centre for over 300,000 people and located in the heart of the country, Coventry is fast becoming the preferred destination for relocation for a number of government departments.

With the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority becoming the latest signatory to make the move here to join the likes of the Electoral Commission and the Learning and Skills Council, the total number of public sector bodies in Coventry stands at over 30, equating to over 38,000 (33% of the workforce) people employed within a number of sub-sectors, including health, public administration and education.

Coventry City Council is the biggest employer in the city with over 18,000 employees, whereas the University Hospital and the University of Warwick employ 6,000 and 5,000 workers respectively.

The city centre is set for a billion pound transformation that will effectively double the size of its current retail offering and entice a number of leading ‘aspirational’ brands to the area. The 22% of the workforce that is currently employed in the retail sector, will inevitably rise substantially over the coming years.

And underpinning much of this investment is the financial sector. Collectively, the banking, finance and insurance sector employ around 20% of workers in Coventry.

Key business districts
The University of Warwick Science Park opened in 1984 was originally seen as an unusual development as it was one of the first R&D parks in the country. The success of the Park led, quite quickly, to the recognition that the city would need more business parks on the edge of the city.

Westwood Business Park has been seen as a follow-on location for the growing businesses from the Science Park and has become home to a number of organisations, including Barclays Bank and The Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors.

Elsewhere, Bilton Industrial Estate and Hales Industrial Estate are home to a significant number of hi-tech firms.

As for the future, there will soon be a new quality office space in the city centre made up of three main developments: Belgrade Plaza, the Friargate development at the railway station and the £23 million Corporation Street development.

If you're thinking of moving to the area, take a look at some of the current property available to buy or let in Coventry.

Take a closer look
A picture is worth a thousand words. You can see some images from in and around Coventry below.

Looking for local vacancies? See all current jobs in Coventry or find out more information on the local area.