Jobs in Worcester | Pictures of Worcester

Worcester is a quintessentially English city with a rich and colourful history that boasts the world’s first newspaper dating back to 1690, world-famous ceramics and Britain’s greatest composer, Sir Edward Elgar. The city’s enviable location and elegant Tudor and Georgian architecture combined with its magnificent edifice, Worcester Cathedral, make the city one of the top tourist destinations in the UK attracting over 2.5 million people a year. But Worcester is more than a picture postcard economy and as vital to the economy that tourism is, it is by no means the most important in terms of job creation.

Then and now
The completion of the Worcester to Birmingham canal in 1815 propelled the city from market town status to an important partner in the West Midlands industrial alliance that formed one of the strongest economic hubs in Britain throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. And by 1825, some 30,000 people were employed in the glove-making industry which saw the city firmly established as the leading manufacturer of gloves in Europe. Indeed, the landmark St Andrew’s Spire on Deansway is nicknamed the ‘glover’s needle’ in recognition of the major significance that this industry had on the area.

The manufacture of Porcelain and machine tools soon followed with the likes of Royal Worcester Porcelain quickly developing worldwide prominence – complementing the thriving ceramics heartland of the Potteries in Stoke-on-Trent.

Today, Worcester’s economy has followed the national trend of moving away from a high dependency on traditional industries such as manufacturing and moving more toward a diversified service economy. However, the manufacturing sector continues to play a significant role in driving the local economy, albeit on a reduced level than ten years ago.

Indeed, the sector currently accounts for around 21 per cent of all jobs in Worcester with some high profile organisations continuing to support the sector, including Cosworth Technology, Carnaud Metalbox (the largest packaging manufacturer in the world), Lea & Perrins and Royal Worcester Porcelain, which has been manufacturing bone china and porcelain tableware products for over 200 years. Whereas Bosch Thermotechnology is the largest employer within this sector with over 1,800 workers, closely followed Brintons which employs 1,700 staff.

Although manufacturing numbers have gone down in recent years, it is still the city's third largest employment sector. But the strength of this sector combined with a strong engineering workforce has provided the perfect stimulant for a growing aerospace and defence sector that has seen the likes of QinetiQ aircraft testing and evaluation, the largest science and technology organisation in Europe, to set up shop in Worcester with a 2,000-strong workforce.

The city’s increasing importance as the county’s main shopping centre and visitor destination has sustained a retail and tourism sector that sees more than 2.5 million people visit the city each year, generating around £80m for the local economy. And when the associated industries of distribution – of which Salvesen Food Logistics is the largest employer in the region - and wholesale are added to the mix, the overall retail and tourism sector provides work for approximately 17 per cent of the local workforce.

With a workforce of some 52,000, Worcester accounts for over 1 in 5 (21 per cent) of all employment opportunities in a county that has one of the lowest levels of unemployment in the UK, averaging 5 per cent above the national average. And at the forefront of this employment creation is the public sector.

As the county town and the administrative centre for Worcestershire, the public sector is the biggest employment provider in the city with employment opportunities found in the fields of administration, health and education. Responsible for 24 per cent of the city’s workforce, the largest employers in this- and across all- sector include Worcestershire County Council (employs over 17,000 people) and Worcestershire Health Authority NHS Trust (6,500 employees). Whereas Worcestershire Acute Hospital Trust and Sanctuary Housing Association employ 4,000 and 2,700 staff respectively.

The finance sector is one that is earmarked for continued future growth, despite the current testing market conditions. Indeed, around 16 per cent of Worcester’s workforce plies their trade in the areas of banking, financial services and insurance, with a number of leading institutions based in the city including Britannic Assurance Plc which employs 1,500 workers. And at time of writing, there were more jobs being advertised within the finance sector than any other in the city – more than four times as many than the public sector which has the second highest demand in Worcester.

Key business areas
Worcester’s commercial centre is predominantly located within the main city centre itself, with Tallow Hill being the focal point which itself, is due for further expansion along with the redevelopment of Lowesmoor and the Lychgate Centre.

Elsewhere, the Birmingham to Worcestershire Technology Corridor is, as the name suggests, littered with a growing number of ICT and creative organisations.

There are a number of industrial estates and business parks throughout the local area, including Berkeley Business Park, a new development situated next to Junction 6 of the M5 motorway and 10 minutes from the city centre. And next door is Knightsbridge Park.

Whereas Malvern Hills Science Park is one of the most significant hi-technology parks in the country and home to a number of incubator units.

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

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

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