The UK’s top ten event job hotspots revealed

The ongoing pandemic has heavily impacted the events industry over the past 12 months. But with venues now back up and running, which UK city has the most event job prospects available right now? 

Following a staggering 355% increase in Google searches for the term “event jobs near me” in the last six months¹, we conducted a study that revealed the top ten event job hotspots in the UK² by analysing the percentage of total available job vacancies that are within the events industry.

The results reveal the top ten UK cities with the highest percentage3 of events related jobs are :  

The new research indicates that Bath, the largest city in the county of Somerset, is the place to be if you want a career in the events industry, with 13% of all jobs in that location being event related. Some of the event related jobs available in Bath include an event chef, an event executive and an events coordinator. The average salary of an event job in Bath is £30,127, which is 5% higher than the county average salary (£28,829).

Taking the second spot is London, with 12% of the jobs in this location being event related. Following a 316% increase in people searching for “event jobs London”, the capital is currently advertising 24,198 event related jobs. However, with the average London salary standing at over £43,000, event jobs in the capital are 10% lower than the average city salary.  

The Northern England cities of Liverpool and Manchester also make it into the top ten list, with 11% of jobs in both Manchester and Liverpool being event related. With a high percentage of event related jobs in these cities, the figures highlight the strong arts and entertainment culture within the North of England. Combining the two cities, there are over 3,000 events taking place between August 2021 and August 2022⁴, with more likely to be added to the list.  

The popular seaside town of Brighton, located on the Southern Coast of England, stands fifth in the top ten list. Between August 2021 and August 2021, the seaside resort will see 1,676 events take place⁵, which demonstrates the need for the 495 event jobs being advertised in Brighton. The average salary for an event job in this city is £29,824, which is 14% lower than the average city salary. Event positions available in Brighton include a graduate event executive and an event steward/ess.

Located in North West England, Chester is a cathedral city close to the border with Wales. As it stands, there are 332 event jobs in this city, which makes up 11% of the total number of jobs available (3,114). People who are looking for a job in the events industry within Chester can expect to make an average salary of £27,990, which is 7% below the average city salary (£28,321). 

Compared to its total number of jobs (7,793), event jobs in the Scottish city of Edinburgh make up 10% of overall vacancies. With the relevant qualifications and a few years of experience, you can expect to earn on average over £34,000 in an event job based in Edinburgh. From August 2021 to August 2022, there are 636 events and festivals being held in Edinburgh⁶, so it’s no surprise that there is a demand for event employees.

Located in the heart of Northern England, York is a city famous for its viking and roman roots, and hosts events such as the Jorvik Viking Festival and the Medieval Makers family event⁷. Furthermore, 9% of the jobs currently available in York are event related, and have an average salary of £29,100.

The second largest city in the UK, Birmingham, has 211 events and festivals coming up between August 2021 and August 2022⁸. In light of this there are 1,849 event related jobs currently available in the city, compared to the 20,082 other jobs on the Birmingham market right now. Event jobs you can expect to find here include an events executive and an events assistant

Leeds ranks tenth in the event job hotspots, with 9% of the total jobs available in the city  being event related. The average salary of an event job in the Yorkshire city comes in at £33,188, and job opportunities include a marketing and events administrator, an event officer, and an event sales agent.

For those who graduated from university this year and are on the lookout for a new and thrilling industry to be a part of, events could be for you, and these top ten cities are a great starting point for your event job search. If you recently studied events management at university, the jobs directly related to your degree include⁹: 

If you are interested in being a conference manager, London and Birmingham look like the cities to be, with a combined total of 255 conference manager jobs being advertised. For those focused on getting a job as an event manager, hotel manager, education manager or restaurant manager, London or Manchester would be the best cities to search. This comes as a result of London advertising over 3,000 positions for these job types, and Manchester over 500. If you fancy working in a pub, there are a substantial number of public house manager jobs within London and Bristol, with a combined 232 positions being advertised for this job type.

The events industry has been one of the most affected by the ongoing government restrictions. From wedding planners to festival organisers, people have had to find other ways of making an income, for some, this meant changing industries completely. But with restrictions now lifted for most events and festivals, the industry is picking up once again and more event jobs are being advertised. The events industry has always been a great industry to be part of, and we believe now is the perfect time to start a career in it.