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Workforce

Recognised the world over for our industrial achievements Darlington's reputation as a key inward investment location is underpinned by a high calibre workforce. 

With a working age population of 65,100 and a further 1.6 million people within an hours'drive time, finding skilled staff for your business really couldn't get any easier!   

And, with over 90% of the working age population holding a qualification, and more than a quarter educated to degree level, it means that Darlington can provide the perfect  workforce for any business looking to grow or move into the area.

 

> 90%

of the working age population hold a qualification, and more than a quarter are educated to degree level

> 38%

of Darlington residents are employed in professional occupations

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Talent Pool

  • Working age population of 65,100 (Source: NOMIS)
  • Darlington's employment rate is 72.2% - higher than all other parts of the Tees Valley and the North East average
  • 42% of the working age population are employed within management, professional and technical occupations; 21.9% within administrative and skilled trade occupations; 19.1% are employed within caring and other service occupations and 17% are employed within process plant/machine operatives and elementary occupations. 
  • With excellent transport links Darlington’s catchment area includes the Tees Valley, North Yorkshire, Durham, Newcastle and Leeds giving your business access to an additional 1.6 million people within an hours drive time.

 

 

Graduates 

With six universities within an hour’s commute of Darlington, delivering world class higher education to over 130,000 students, businesses in Darlington can be confident that recruitment and retention of high quality staff is assured. 

A growing population of students from outside the UK adds value to employers’ access to cultural and international markets. This strong pool of international students is recognised as a skilful and flexible resource.

Diverse

Whilst other areas can claim high levels of talent and skills in certain sectors, Darlington is distinctive in having a large quantity and quality of potential employees across a wide range of different industries, including engineering/manufacturing, professional and business services, subsea, logistics, retail and health.