Time is short on these: 4,984 public-sector vacancies on GovJobs close in the seven days from 20 July 2026. This is what is running out, which parts of the sector are tightest, and how much notice they gave.
What is closing, by sector
| Sector | Closing | Share | Typical notice given |
|---|---|---|---|
| NHS | 3,318 | 67% | 19 days |
| Councils | 950 | 19% | 17 days |
| Schools | 625 | 13% | 14 days |
| Universities | 47 | 1% | 15 days |
| Civil Service | 18 | 0% | 23 days |
| Police & emergency | 16 | 0% | 24 days |
| Rail & transport | 10 | 0% | 13 days |
"Typical notice" is the median number of days between an advert being published and its deadline. A short figure means those employers move fast, so a weekly check is not enough to catch them.
What they advertise
| Sector | Median starting salary | Range | Adverts with a salary |
|---|---|---|---|
| Police & emergency | £46,662 | £15,259 – £74,360 | 12 |
| Civil Service | £41,983 | £27,164 – £97,819 | 13 |
| NHS | £38,585 | £10,500 – £180,000 | 2,794 |
| Councils | £32,597 | £10,081 – £124,817 | 765 |
| Schools | £25,408 | £10,411 – £71,181 | 320 |
These are advertised starting figures, not average earnings, and only cover the adverts that publish a salary — many public-sector roles quote a band or grade instead. Read them as a guide to the market, not a pay survey.
Where they are
The busiest regions were South East (654, 13%), London (652, 13%), North West (597, 12%), South West (471, 9%), West Midlands (452, 9%) and East of England (440, 9%).
Closing soonest
- Senior Biomedical Scientist - Section Head / Deputy Quality Manager — NHS: Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust · Oxford, OX3 9DU · £49387.00 to £56515.00 · closes 20 July
- School Fees Manager & Registrar — Schools: Colfe’s School · South East London · £40,000 to £45,000 · closes 20 July
- Financial Inclusion Officer — Councils: East Cambridgeshire District Council · Ely · £33,699 to £38,220 · closes 20 July
- Band 8b Consultant Physiotherapist — Civil Service: Ministry of Defence (Defence Medical Services) · Plymouth, PL2 2BG · £64455.00 to £74896.00 · closes 20 July
- Financial Services Officer — NHS: Betsi Cadwaladr University Health Board · Bangor, LL57 2PW · £25760.00 to £27476.00 · closes 20 July
- Strategic Programme and Communications Coordinator — Schools: The Marches School and Technology College · Oswestry · £22,777-£23,940 per annum · closes 20 July
- Student Planner — Councils: Northumberland County Council · County Hall, Morpeth, United Kingdom · £25,583 - £25,989 · closes 20 July
- Community Nursery Nurse — NHS: South Warwickshire University NHS Foundation Trust · Coventry, CV4 8DA · £28392.00 to £31157.00 · closes 20 July
- Deputy Town Clerk (Deputy Chief Officer) — Councils: Stratford-upon-Avon Town Council · Stratford-upon-Avon · £39,862 to £42,839 · closes 20 July
- B7 ICT Mental Health and Dementia Link Practitioner — NHS: Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust · Aldershort, GU11 1AY · £51657.00 to £58785.00 · closes 20 July
- Integrated front door Health Visitor 8825/3228 — Councils: Lincolnshire County Council · Lincoln, LN1 1XX · £39152.00 to £45718.00 · closes 20 July
- B7 Clinical/Counselling Psychologist- Fixed term (mat cover) — NHS: Surrey and Borders Partnership NHS Foundation Trust · Epsom, KT17 4QJ · £51657.00 to £58785.00 · closes 20 July
Search them all
These are a sample — browse every role closing this week with the closing-within-7-days filter, or set up a saved search to get deadline alerts by email.
_Every figure above is counted from the GovJobs index — the UK public-sector vacancies we hold at the time of writing — rather than from official statistics, and the live counts change daily. Adverts that carry no salary, region or closing date are excluded from the section that needs them, so section totals will not always match. Applications are always made on the official employer or source website._