How many vacancies are there in the UK Health & social work sector?

The UK Human health & social work activities sector had 124,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026, down 1,000 on the previous quarter and down 9,000 (6.8%) on a year earlier. These are real, seasonally adjusted ONS VACS02 estimates (SIC 2007 section Q).

What is the Gera Vacancy Index for Health & social work?

The Gera Vacancy Index for Human health & social work activities is 123 (UK = 100), meaning the sector has a tighter labour market than the UK economy. It is computed as the sector's ONS ratio of 2.7 vacancies per 100 employee jobs divided by the UK figure of 2.2, times 100 — a transparent, reproducible calculation.

Is hiring getting harder or easier in Health & social work?

In Human health & social work activities, the vacancy ratio moved from 2.8 vacancies per 100 jobs a year ago to 2.7 now. Vacancies went from 133,000 to 124,000 over the year (-6.8%). All figures are real ONS VACS02 estimates; none are modelled.

GeraJobs / UK Job Vacancies by Sector / Health & social work

Human health & social work activities — UK Job Vacancies

The UK Human health & social work activities sector had 124,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026 — 2.7 per 100 employee jobs, a Gera Vacancy Index of 123 (UK = 100), above the UK average. Real ONS VACS02 data.

How many job vacancies are there in the UK Health & social work sector?

As of March to May 2026 (ONS VACS02), the UK Human health & social work activities sector had 124,000 unfilled job vacancies — down 6.8% on a year earlier — at 2.7 vacancies per 100 employee jobs. That is a Gera Vacancy Index of 123 (UK = 100), above the UK average. Real ONS data, OGL v3.0; re-dated monthly.

Source:ONS Vacancies and jobs in the UK — Vacancies by industry (VACS02)·As of March to May 2026 · updated monthly · last refreshed 18 June 2026

Gera Vacancy Index

Human health & social work activities ranks #1 of 18 UK sectors by vacancy volume. 2.7 vacancies per 100 employee jobs vs the UK's 2.2 — a tighter labour market than the UK economy.

How this is calculated

123

Health & social work vs the UK

Measure	Health & social work	UK (all sectors)
Unfilled vacancies (March to May 2026)	124,000	707,000
Vacancies per 100 employee jobs	2.7	2.2
Gera Vacancy Index (UK = 100)	123	100
Change on previous quarter	down 1,000	—
Change year-on-year	-6.8% (-9,000)	—

A year ago (March to May 2025) the Health & social work ratio was 2.8 vacancies per 100 jobs, on 133,000 vacancies.

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UK sector

Unfilled vacancies

124,000

Per 100 employee jobs

2.7

Gera Vacancy Index

123

Human health & social work activities has 2.7 vacancies per 100 employee jobs, versus 2.2 for the whole UK — a Gera Vacancy Index of 123 (UK = 100), so a tighter, harder-to-hire market than the UK average. Vacancies are down 6.8% year-on-year.

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Health & social work vacancies — FAQ

How many vacancies are there in the UK Health & social work sector?: The UK Human health & social work activities sector had 124,000 unfilled job vacancies in March to May 2026, down 1,000 on the previous quarter and down 9,000 (6.8%) on a year earlier. These are real, seasonally adjusted ONS VACS02 estimates (SIC 2007 section Q).
What is the Gera Vacancy Index for Health & social work?: The Gera Vacancy Index for Human health & social work activities is 123 (UK = 100), meaning the sector has a tighter labour market than the UK economy. It is computed as the sector's ONS ratio of 2.7 vacancies per 100 employee jobs divided by the UK figure of 2.2, times 100 — a transparent, reproducible calculation.
Is hiring getting harder or easier in Health & social work?: In Human health & social work activities, the vacancy ratio moved from 2.8 vacancies per 100 jobs a year ago to 2.7 now. Vacancies went from 133,000 to 124,000 over the year (-6.8%). All figures are real ONS VACS02 estimates; none are modelled.

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Related on GeraJobs

UK job vacancies — all sectors ranked — and how the Gera Vacancy Index is calculated.
Gera Pay Index — UK salary by region — how pay varies across the UK, from real ONS ASHE data.
Post a Health & social work vacancy on GeraJobs — reach candidates in this sector now.

Source: ONS Vacancies and jobs in the UK — Vacancies by industry (VACS02) (SIC 2007 section Q, series JP9W / JPB9). Figures are March to May 2026, seasonally adjusted, 3-month rolling, released 18 June 2026. Licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0 (OGL v3). The Gera Vacancy Index for Human health & social work activities is computed by GeraJobs from these figures; no figure is modelled or interpolated.