UK QA hiring cools from its September peak
New roles are down 17% over the last 30 days, and the weekly pace has eased 33% from its mid-September high.
of open roles are at employers on the UK Home Office sponsor register. Capgemini, Leidos, Sopra Steria and Leonardo Company are on the list.
UK sponsor register, matched by employeris what the typical role asks for. 13% ask for 10 years or more.
26% of open roles state years60 new roles in the last 30 days, against 72 the 30 days before, at the same companies.
Companies read for 60 days or moreThis week's read
There are 184 open QA and Test Engineer roles in the UK right now, spread across 119 companies. New postings have slowed: 60 went up in the last 30 days, against 72 in the 30 days before that, a drop of 17%. The weekly count has come down too, from a peak of 24 new roles in the week of 14 September to 16 in the week of 26 October, down 33% from that high.
This is not an easy market for someone early in their career. Only 3% of open roles are junior, against 53% at mid level, 20% senior, 16% lead and 8% principal. Where roles state a year requirement, the median minimum is 5 years, and 13% ask for 10 or more. Only 26% of roles state a years requirement at all, so check the posting itself rather than assume.
Visa sponsorship is live in this market: 49% of open roles sit at employers with recent filings on the UK Home Office sponsor register. Capgemini has the most open roles of any single employer, 13, and is on that register, along with Leidos, Sopra Steria, Leonardo Company, Vodafone and Expleo. The top 8 employers together hold 24% of all open roles, so hiring is spread fairly wide beyond them too.
Working from home is rare here: just 7% of roles are remote. Pay is hard to judge from postings, since only 15% of roles list a salary, too few to say what the market typically pays.
On skills, Python is the most asked for, in 26% of postings, with Playwright close behind at 22%, then Java and AI and machine learning both at 18%. Agile is named in a third of postings and Jira in 22%. ISTQB is the certification that comes up most, in 15% of roles, well ahead of other named certifications.
What this means for you
Three things you can act on this week
- Expect a high experience bar
Where years are stated, the median minimum is 5, and 13% of roles ask for 10 or more. Only 3% of open roles are junior. Check each posting's stated requirement rather than assume.
- Visa sponsorship is live here
49% of open roles sit at employers with recent filings on the UK Home Office sponsor register, including Capgemini, Leidos, Sopra Steria and Vodafone. Worth checking sponsor status before applying if that matters to you.
- Don't count on remote or pay transparency
Only 7% of roles are remote, so most QA hiring expects you on site. Just 15% of postings list pay, so you will often need to ask directly.
Momentum
New QA roles each week
Last 30 days: 60 new roles, against 72 the 30 days before (-17%). Each week counts the same companies, and a role counts as new only in the week it was posted, so a careers site we start reading never shows up as growth.
See the numbers
| Week starting | New roles |
|---|---|
| 7 Sep | 14 |
| 14 Sep | 24 |
| 21 Sep | 14 |
| 28 Sep | 11 |
| 5 Oct | 18 |
| 12 Oct | 16 |
| 19 Oct | 11 |
| 26 Oct | 16 |
Who is hiring
The companies with the most open QA roles
119 companies are hiring. The top eight hold 24% of the open roles.
| Company | Open roles | Change in new roles | Sponsor register |
|---|---|---|---|
| Capgemini | 13 | On the list | |
| Graphcore | 6 | ||
| Leidos | 5 | On the list | |
| Sopra Steria | 5 | On the list | |
| DXC Technology | 4 | ||
| Leonardo Company | 4 | On the list | |
| Vodafone | 4 | On the list | |
| Expleo | 3 | On the list |
Change compares new roles in the last 30 days with the 30 days before, shown where a company posted 25 or more in the earlier 30 days. Staffing agencies are left out. A company name links to its Ashney company page where there is one.
What they ask for
The technology QA roles ask for most
Ask Rate is the share of roles that name a skill, from 179 postings read in full. Ways of working (methods such as Agile, tools such as Jira) are listed apart; office tools and soft skills are left out.
Ways of working
Industries named most: SaaS 3%, Automotive 3%, Financial services 3%. Certifications named: ISTQB 15%, BCS Software Testing certification 1%, Certified Software Test Engineer 1%. 7% of open roles say they are remote.
Cite this report