There is no denying that London is one of the best places to head if you are looking for a job in tech, but it’s not the only tech hub with job prospects. You’ll find more than 2,000 fintech companies in London, including a number of big names, but there are places to build a career other than the UK’s capital. Thanks to additional investment in tech hubs around the UK, exciting job opportunities are appearing up and down the country. Below, we have taken a look at three of the UK’s tech hubs that you should be paying attention to.
Cambridge
A lot of people might be surprised to find Cambridge listed as one of the UK’s major tech hubs, but the city actually has a lot going for it. There are a number of world renowned universities in Cambridge, many of which boast incredible research capabilities, meaning that the area has a guaranteed supply of tech talent. In fact, the city and the surrounding area has become known as ‘Silicon Fen’.
Technical innovation is huge in Cambridge, and 79% of companies in the area are linked to the tech sector in some way. Microsoft, Amazon and Toshiba can all be found in Cambridge, along with startups and local businesses. The tech sector employs over 3,000 in Cambridge alone. There is no shortage of employment opportunities for those in tech.
Glasgow
Scotland’s IT and software industry is expected to grow by a third before 2024, which has opened up a lot of prospects for top talent in the area. Aberdeen and Dundee are also doing well - this is due to Rockstar Games being based in Dundee, and Aberdeen being a main player in the energy industry - but Glasgow is where things are really booming. There has been a 31% growth in tech employment since 2018 in Glasgow and Edinburgh, and this is expected to grow even further.
Currently, Glasgow is one of the fastest growing tech investment hubs in the UK, boasting an impressive 156% growth since 2019. Tech companies brought £43 million in venture capital investments to Glasgow in 2020, which created a lot of job opportunities for tech talent. There’s a lot of interesting roles available in the area, and no shortage of projects.
Belfast
Belfast is a big and bustling city, and it’s the centre of Northern Ireland’s tech scene, making it one of the UK’s major hubs for job prospects. Around a quarter of all available jobs in Belfast are related to tech, which is a huge increase from 2018, when only 10% of available jobs were in tech. This shows just how many tech opportunities there are, and the likelihood of there being even more in the future.
There’s also a lot of tech investment happening in Belfast. In 2021, Belfast startups raised close to £19 million in venture capital funding. This amount was a considerable increase from the year before.