Security cleared jobs news roundup: September 2023
Keep up-to-date with some of the biggest stories in the world of security cleared jobs in our monthly roundup.
We’re rounding up some of the biggest security cleared stories of the past few weeks. In September, a British Army chief outlined plans for future generations, the UK nuclear sector saw record employment rates, 90 apprentices began work on boosting the country’s digital infrastructure and the preferred location for the Treasury’s second headquarters was secured.
British army set for ambitious modernisation
The British army is undergoing “the largest and most ambitious programme of modernisation of our time,” according to General Sir Patrick Sanders, who spoke on the opening day of London’s Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) exhibition.
Some of the most exciting changes include a £41 billion investment over ten years through the Defence Equipment plan, a reoriented Joint Aviation Command and the founding of a Soldier Academy.
General Sir Patrick Sanders carried on: “We are investing in our people and perhaps your future employees because it is not armies that win wars - nations do - and it is our combined strength that provides the UK’s deterrence.”
UK nuclear industry surges to twenty-year high
Nuclear employment has reached a twenty-year high as government support and new projects continue to stimulate the industry. According to data from the Nuclear Industry Association’s annual Jobs Map, the sector now employs over 77,000 experts, representing a 20 per cent year-on-year increase.
Notable sources of hiring activity include Hinkley Point C with 9,500 jobs and Rolls-Royce’s development of small modular reactors. Additionally, the Culham Centre for Fusion Energy has created approximately 2,300 new positions.
Speaking on the positive news, Andrew Bowie MP said: “From the government’s backing of new plants at Hinkley and Sizewell, to the launch of Great British Nuclear to spearhead new technologies, we are experiencing a nuclear revival.”
Cumbrian apprentices begin training for future telecoms jobs
The first cohort of Cumbrian apprentices is now training for future telecoms jobs, after the government injected millions of pounds to support lightning-speed broadband connectivity throughout Cumbria, levelling up the UK’s digital infrastructure.
The government backing forms part of Project Gigabit, a £5 billion initiative to connect rural areas to the UK. The mission aims to achieve 85 per cent gigabit coverage of the country by 2025, before achieving 100 per cent by 2030.
Sir John Whittingdale, minister for data and digital infrastructure, added: “Our partnerships with businesses like Fibrus and Viberoptix are spurring investment in local communities and securing a pipeline of talent for years to come.”
Work set to begin on second Treasury HQ
The Darlington Economic Campus now has an official location following the Government Property Agency’s purchase of ministers’ preferred site of Brunswick Street car park. Work is expected to start in 2024 for a 2026 completion.
Cabinet Office minister Jeremey Quin suggested the campus would serve as a base for 1,400 civil servants and heralded the development of a permanent hub as a “visible signal of levelling up in action.”
The new campus is part of the Cabinet Office’s ambitious Places for Growth initiative, set to relocate roughly 22,000 jobs from London by 2030. With the announcement of the Treasury’s second headquarters came an update that over 1,100 roles have already been committed to the site and 674 relocated so far.