June brought the most encouraging UK jobs data in a long while, and the recovery, when it comes, will reach specialist markets first. Our July 2026 Talent Trends Report reads the latest REC/KPMG and ONS data through the lens of the three markets we work in: insurance, technology & change, and legal.
Is the UK recruitment market recovering?
The early mechanics are there. The June 2026 REC/KPMG Report on Jobs shows permanent placements close to stabilising (index 49.1, the softest decline in three months), contract and temporary billings at their fastest growth since April 2023 (52.7), and starting salaries rising at their fastest pace since January. Candidates are also becoming more hesitant to move, which is exactly what happens as markets approach a recovery: the strongest people sit tight until conditions are clearer.
What June's data means for insurance, tech and legal hiring
The UK-wide numbers hide what's happening inside specialist markets. The report's sector lens covers all three of ours:
Insurance - which roles feature among June's hardest to fill, and why candidate volume isn't the constraint
Technology & change - the skills that never stopped competing, even while the wider tech market went quiet
Legal - what the contract shortage list reveals about how firms are really covering demand
The common thread: the shortage lists are already behaving like an upturn. Employers who wait for the recovery to be official will be hiring against everyone else, at recovery prices. The report sets out what the prepared are doing instead.
What's inside the July report
• The June REC/KPMG hiring headlines, in plain English, with regional differences
• Expert commentary from KPMG and the REC and how to interpret it
• A sector lens on insurance, technology & change and legal hiring
• Why the candidates you want are not applying, and what to do about it
• Three moves to make before September
FAQs
Which skills are hardest to hire in the UK right now?
June's REC data shows shortages concentrated in technology, insurance, and legal specialisms. The report's sector lens breaks down exactly which roles, and what that means for hiring plans.
Should employers hire specialists now or wait for the recovery?
Waiting usually costs more: starting salaries for scarce skills are already rising, and specialist markets tighten first in a recovery. The report covers three moves to make before September.
Does Gerrard White cover contract as well as permanent hiring?
Yes. We support both permanent and contractor hiring across insurance, technology & change, and legal in the UK, Europe, and the US, with IR35-aware contract placement.
Know your market before it moves.
If there's a specialist role on your horizon, we'll give you the lie of the land for it: market depth, the going rate, and how contested it's likely to be as things pick up. A short conversation, no obligation.
