Jobs in Lincoln | Pictures of Lincoln

Located equidistance from Nottingham and Doncaster and at the heart of England 's rural flatlands is Lincoln , a city that gave the world one of the finest literary figures, Alfred Lord Tennyson and the first ever military tank. Throughout the centuries, Lincoln has seen the rise and fall and resurrection of its local economy and today, the city is fast-becoming one of the main commercial centres in the East Midlands region.

Then and now
Almost 2,000 years ago the Roman's established Lincoln as one of four regional capitals of Britain and a millennia later, the Norman's built a castle and cathedral that saw the city flourish as a centre of the wool trade with Flanders, which continued until the late fourteenth century when the trade was relocated to nearby Boston – a blow that Lincoln failed to recover from for almost 400 years. Indeed, Lincoln's rural environment proved to be the ideal base for the Agricultural- soon followed by the Industrial- Revolution of the 1700s and 1800s which saw the city become a major manufacturer of agricultural machinery and drainage equipment whose significance precipitated the re-opening of the Foss Dyke Canal that enabled the movement of coal and other raw materials to the area.

Lincoln 's population quickly grew as a result of this new technology which stimulated the development of a new engineering industry and its local economy soon overtook that of nearby Boston , to whom it had lost out to for so long. And when the railways came to the area, these manufacturing industries were encouraged to increase production and Lincoln quickly became a leading engineering centre, specialising in diesel engines and heavy manufacturing which continued deep into the twentieth century, with the city's engineering industry spawning the world's first tank – ‘Little Willie' - which saw action during World War I. Thirty years later, Lincoln's engineering pedigree was enhanced when it evolved as one of the leading manufacturer's of not just tanks, but trains, military aircraft and armaments for the war effort.

Today, Lincoln's manufacturing and engineering industries have all but gone with Siemens Industrial Turbomachinery being little more than a token gesture for an industry that once employed thousands of people for the best part of two hundred years. And over the last twenty years, Lincoln has conformed to the national trend of coming to terms with life as a post-industrial economy in favour of a service-led economy today.

Dominating the service industry are three key economic drivers that combine to provide employment for more than three-quarters of Lincoln 's workforce; the public, retail and tourist sectors.

Indeed, the public sector has now taken over the role of being the most important employer in the area. With a city population of around 88,000 and a wider urban area population of 121,000, Lincoln is the administrative centre for the county of Lincolnshire and employs more people in the fields of public administration, health and education than any other sector. And it is the education sector that has seen the most significant growth in recent years.

Since the University of Lincoln first opened its doors in 1996, it has steadily grown in significance and now employs over 1,000 staff, thereby making it one of the top three employers in the city alongside the United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust and Lincoln City Council who employ 7,000 and 1,000 people respectively.

Despite its aesthetic appeal, Lincoln has long remained one of England 's sleeping tourist giants. Eager to capitalise on its natural assets and striking architectural gems, the city has seen rapid development of its retail sector in a bid to increase its appeal and compete with the more popular shopping centres in nearby Nottingham and Chesterfield . As a result, employment levels in the retail sector have experienced significant growth and will continue to improve as a number of retail projects are completed, such as the Lindongate development.

And a buoyant retail sector directly benefits the hotel, restaurant and wholesale sector – otherwise referred to as ‘ tourism '. Prior to 2005, Lincoln enjoyed a relatively modest tourist industry but, when the climax of the box-office hit film The Da Vinci Code was filmed in Lincoln Cathedral, visitor numbers to the city grew significantly. And so too did demand for labour within this sector which is now one of the top three employers in the area.

The IT sector and a number of so-called ‘knowledge-based' industries have emerged over the last decade – a growth that is largely attributable to the University of Lincoln . And although these businesses represent a smaller percent of the workforce, their contribution to the local economy is increasing. Whereas the agriculture sector remains an important employer in the region with arable farming being the mainstay of the sector.

Key business districts
Lincoln city centre is the commercial heartbeat of the local economy, with all the major retailers, bars, restaurants and hotels predinantly found in the Uphill part of town. Eslewhere, there are a number of industrial parks – albeit in a small scale - located on the outskirts of the city centre, including Allenby Industrial Estate, which is one the oldest industrial estates in Lincoln and made up of over 100 small and medium sized enterprises, that employ over 1,200 people in the manufacturing, retail and service sectors.

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

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

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