Jobs in Hereford | Pictures of Hereford

Hereford is literally translated as ‘army ford’ – depicting the fact that it was long the garrison town that defended West Mercia against invasion from the west. And when Richard I granted the town city status in 1189, he arrogantly referred to it as ‘Hereford in Wales’ - arguably as a gesture to antagonise the local Welsh tribesmen who continually threatened the English border just 16 miles to the west. Indeed, Hereford’s military connections continued until the end of the twentieth century with the city being the former home of the Special Air Service (SAS).

Then and now
Hereford has and continues to be a primarily agricultural-based economy. Throughout the centuries it has existed as a market town that was largely untouched by industrialization, unlike its West Midland counterparts. And today, Hereford has a higher proportion of the workforce is employed in farming, forestry and fishing compared with regionally and nationally.

However, the problem facing Hereford’s economy is that it is rather fragile in that it lags behind the rest of the region in terms of the health and care, creative, tourism and environmental sectors which have been widely identified as key economic drivers in a modern economy. And the city has a lower start-up rate for new businesses and fewer knowledge-based firms than anywhere else in the Midlands. In other words, the economy is currently too focused on vulnerable industries rather than growth sectors. Thankfully, the local Council has taken the matter in hand and initiated a significant regeneration scheme.

Part of the plan is to encourage and support more young people to become entrepreneurs. Whilst the other, and most significant part, is the Edgar Street Grid – a 100-acre regeneration project to refurbish the city centre and make Hereford’s retail and night time economy more competitive with nearby Worcester and Cheltenham. Work is expected to start in 2010, and should take around 15 years to complete.

And given the fact that Hereford is a rural economy, plans are being considered as to how best to maximize the countryside in terms of income generation and job creation, such as creating an eco-tourism sector with working holidays or encouraging more farm’s to convert to organic production which, by definition, demands more workers than traditional farming methods.

In the meantime, it is the manufacturing industry that is one of the most significant sectors in Hereford in terms of job creation and wealth creation. Indeed, around 18-20 per cent of the workforce plies their trade in manufacturing across a number of key organizations, including Sun Valley Foods Ltd who employs over 2,400 people, along with Painter Brothers – the UK's largest and leading manufacturer of steel towers and now a subsidiary of Balfour Beatty Plc – and Special Metals Wiggin Ltd.

Of equal importance is the wholesale and retail sector. As the county town, Hereford is the biggest shopping district in Herefordshire and is responsible for more than 1 in 5 (22 per cent) of all jobs in the area, with Weston's Cider, HP Bulmer Ltd and Wye Valley Brewery among the biggest employers in the city.

And being the administrative centre for the city, responsible for an overall population of around 170,000 residents, employment with Hereford’s public sector is unsurprisingly the most significant employer in the area. Indeed, around 30 per cent of the workforce is employed within the fields of public administration, health and education, with Herefordshire Council and Hereford Hospitals NHS Trust being two of the biggest employers in the region employing 6,300 and 1,000 staff respectively.

Elsewhere, the financial, IT and professional services sector may currently lag behind the rest of the regional economy but, it continues to stand out as a key growth sector.

Key business districts
Most of Hereford’s workforce is employed by organizations that are predominantly located in the city centre itself. However, the bulk of the manufacturing and light industries can be found on the outskirts of the city, particularly at Rotherwas Industrial Estate and Holme Lacy.

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

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

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