Regional Temp Recruitment Trends: Where Demand is Growing in the UK

The temporary recruitment market in 2025 has entered a cooling phase. Compared to 2024, demand for hiring is softening, unemployment is inching upwards, and vacancies are falling across multiple industries. Yet, the picture is far from uniform. While some regions are struggling with oversupply and reduced vacancies, others are showing resilience and pockets of growth.

For temp agency leaders, understanding these regional variations is essential to maintaining profitability, ensuring compliance, and directing resources toward the most promising opportunities. Here’s a breakdown of what’s happening across the UK right now.

London: Competition Rising, Demand Slowing

London currently faces the toughest conditions. The capital has the highest unemployment rate in the UK at 6.4%, up from 5% in 2024. Temp billings have been declining for over a year, though the rate of decline did ease in Q2 according to REC data.

Candidate availability is increasing, which means more competition for fewer shifts. For agencies, this creates both an opportunity and a challenge: while access to candidates is plentiful, there are fewer roles to place them in.

• Healthcare: Medical support staff demand has slowed slightly, partly due to tighter NHS budgets.
• Education: Agency use in schools remains steady but constrained by reduced public funding.
• Other sectors: Warehousing and logistics play a smaller role in London’s economy, so shifts here are limited.

For agency leaders, success in London requires sharper compliance processes and stronger candidate engagement, ensuring your agency is the first choice when roles do arise.

Midlands: Resistance in Industrial Hiring

The Midlands is bucking the national trend, showing resilience in its temp market. In fact, the Midlands was the only UK region to report growth in temp billings in May.

Unemployment in the West Midlands sits at 5.2%, just above the UK average, yet demand for temps has remained stable, supported by the region’s industrial base.

• Engineering & Manufacturing: Still performing strongly, particularly in the East Midlands.
• Healthcare: Slow but steady growth.
• Education: Consistent demand.
• Warehousing & Logistics: Declining since 2023, but signs suggest a stabilisation.

Agencies in the Midlands are well-placed to capitalise on this resilience, particularly those with strong candidate pools in engineering and industrial sectors.

North West: A Steady Market

The North West is outperforming much of the country, with unemployment down to 4.5% and employment rates rising. Demand for temps is holding steady thanks to the region’s mix of service and industrial roles.

• Healthcare: A standout sector, driven by continued NHS staffing needs.
• Warehousing & Logistics: Still below 2023 levels but proving more stable than in other regions.
• Education: Strong and consistent demand, particularly in Manchester and Liverpool.

For agencies, the North West presents a more balanced opportunity. Candidate supply and demand remain relatively aligned, meaning agencies that can act quickly on vacancies will continue to thrive.

North East: Supply Outgrowing Demand

The North East faces one of the most difficult recruitment landscapes. Employment rates are the lowest in the UK at 68.2%, while economic inactivity is the highest at 28.2%. Temp demand is soft, with limited opportunities across sectors.

• Warehousing & Transport: Declining, reducing opportunities for blue-collar temps.
• Healthcare: Still some openings for support staff, though budgets are constrained.
• Education: Schools are struggling to fund agency hires, even where demand exists.

Agencies in the North East face an oversupply of candidates but a shrinking pool of roles. This highlights the need for efficiency, compliance confidence, and strong employer relationships to capture available opportunities.

Key Takeaways for Agency Leaders

The regional differences highlight one truth: temp recruitment in 2025 is about agility and focus.

• Wage Pressure: Despite slower hiring, average earnings are still rising by over 5% year-on-year. Higher costs are deterring some employers from expanding their temp workforce.
• Falling Vacancies: Vacancies are down 17% compared to mid-2024, leaving more candidates competing for fewer jobs.
• Sector Shifts: Healthcare remains the strongest temp sector nationally, though questions surround long-term demand following the NHS 10-year plan. Education remains steady but budget-constrained, while warehousing and logistics may begin stabilising later in 2025.

What This Means for Temp Agencies

In this climate, agencies can’t afford inefficiencies. With supply and demand shifting unevenly across the UK and budget constraints tightening following the recent Employer NI increase agencies should be:

• Targeting growth regions and sectors such as the Midlands industrial base and North West healthcare.
• Streamlining compliance to onboard candidates faster and reduce administrative bottlenecks.
• Engaging candidates effectively to maintain loyalty in an increasingly competitive market.

The agencies that succeed in 2025 will be those that embrace efficiency, adapt to regional shifts, and align operations with the realities of a slower but still opportunity-rich temp market.

For agencies, adapting to regional shifts isn’t just about spotting demand—it’s about having the right tools to respond quickly, stay compliant, and keep candidates engaged. That’s where Mobile Rocket can help. By automating compliance, streamlining shift management, and boosting candidate communication through your own branded mobile app, we give temp agencies the agility needed to succeed in 2025’s cooling market.

Book a demo today to see how Mobile Rocket can help your agency turn market challenges into growth opportunities.