Labour Market Information (LMI)

The LMI for All portal provides high quality, reliable labour market information (LMI) to inform careers decisions.

Update

To find out what we have been doing and what’s next, please read our latest report Developing and enhancing a labour market information database: LMI for All Stakeholder Engagement and Usage, Data and Technical Developments (2018-2019) published by the Department for Education in February 2020.

What's the difference between the national and local labour market? 

National labour market information tells you about jobs and industries in the UK as a whole, whereas local labour market information focuses on one particular area, e.g. Manchester. When researching the labour market for specific careers, both local and national information can be helpful.

Looking at national labour market information will give you a good overall picture of the opportunities open to you in each career area.

However, some parts of the UK are better known for certain types of jobs than others. If you’re dead set on a certain career then researching local labour markets can help you find out whether you’re likely to have more success in certain locations. Generally speaking, there tend to be more employment opportunities in cities, so you might find that your preferred career will require you to move to another place.

If you know you don’t want to move very far to get a job, you’ll need to make sure you consider local labour market information when you choose your qualifications, so that you are getting the skills that employers want in your local area. 

Why do I Need Job Market Information? 

When pursuing a career, it's important to have realistic expectations of how much you'll be paid, where you'll be based and how competitive it is to find a job in that industry.

Looking at labour market information while you’re still at school can help you narrow down your career options. For example, you might rule out a job because you realise there aren’t many opportunities in your local area, or because you don’t want to work the hours it requires. Alternatively, you might decide to reconsider a career in science, technology or engineering when you find out that STEM graduates can earn 25% more than graduates from other subjects!

In the next five to ten years the job market will change – there will be many more jobs in some industries than others. Labour market information can help you to make sure you have the right skills for the jobs of the future.

Researching the labour market can also help you make decisions if you want to change jobs or move to a new location.

Labour Market Information (LMI) gives you an insight into what is happening in the jobs market locally, regionally and nationally. This information can highlight where there are new or expanding industries, where the skills gaps lie and what future trends there may be.

Using LMI when choosing a career is very useful as it helps you to understand where the opportunities are in your chosen sector, what skills you need, what progression there may be and how industries may evolve or change, which will help you to make decisions about your future.

There are a huge number of sources of labour market information. 

Please note this is not an exhaustive list but features the main providers of careers and labour market information.

Careersbox is a free on-line library of careers related videos, news and information aimed at careers advisers and job seekers. Case study videos show real people doing real jobs, giving viewers an insight into entry routes and skill requirements for careers in all sectors.

The Higher Education Statistics Agency collects data from higher education institutions and publishes a range of free statistics on-line, including student destinations.

icould is a careers website helping young people make the most of their potential and talent by showing them how others have used theirs. The icould storytellers relate, in their own words, their real life career journeys in over 1,000 career videos and hundreds of written articles aimed at students, career starters, career changers and careers professionals, parents, teachers and employers. Articles include information about the future world of work and future career prospects in a number of industries.

and North East Ambition who support schools and colleges to provide the best possible careers guidance.  

LMI and Policy Bulletin

Supporting Inspiration, an initiative by Education Development Trust, facilitates links between schools, colleges and employers to help young people to develop their appreciation of the world of work, understand the local labour market and to raise their awareness of opportunities and progression pathways.

National Guidance Research Forum

The National Guidance Research Forum (NGRF) provides information for careers guidance professionals and their website includes an LMI learning module aimed at teachers, tutors and mentors.

The LMI Future Trends section of the NGRF website has labour market information on 25 sectors and broad occupational groups focusing on future changes in the labour market and skills. The information is aimed at people who want to improve and update their knowledge of the UK labour market and has been composed from a range of high quality sources, ensuring that it is up-to-date, reliable and impartial. 

National Careers Service Job Profiles 

The National Careers Service Job Profiles contain information about the types of jobs available in different areas, which industries are growing, which need staff to replace those leaving and the skills which these employers will be looking for.

The National Careers Service Job Profiles contain information on the skills and qualifications required for over 750 jobs. You can also find out about the work involved, salaries you and career prospects.

The Office for National Statistics 

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) is the UK’s largest independent producer of official statistics and is the recognised national statistical institute for the UK. It is responsible for collecting and publishing statistics related to the economy, population and society at national, regional and local levels.

Nomis

The nomis service is provided by the Office for National Statistics giving free access to the most detailed and up-to-date UK labour market statistics from official sources.

Labour market profiles contain summary data from a range of sources for individual local areas. Detailed statistics offer access to a full range of data in greater depth and for multiple local areas.

Informative video podcasts on a number of topics are available, with titles including Young people in the labour market, The unemployed youth in the UK and the monthly Labour market across the UK.

Education & Skills Funding Agency

The Education & Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), an executive agency sponsored by the Department for Education, brings together the former responsibilities of the Education Funding Agency (EFA) and Skills Funding Agency (SFA) to create a single agency accountable for funding education and skills for children, young people and adults. The ESFA delivers the Government's National Find an apprenticeship service, the National Careers Service, and publishes a range of information about the labour market.

Although every effort has been made to ensure that this information was correct at the time of publication, websites and web addresses are particularly subject to change, which may make the information become gradually less accurate.