Time is short on these: 5,593 public-sector vacancies on GovJobs close in the seven days from 27 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 | 4,056 | 73% | 27 days |
| Councils | 868 | 16% | 17 days |
| Schools | 556 | 10% | 17 days |
| Universities | 59 | 1% | 14 days |
| Civil Service | 25 | 0% | 24 days |
| Rail & transport | 17 | 0% | 17 days |
| Police & emergency | 12 | 0% | 15 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| NHS | £34,862 | £10,000 – £28,849,248 | 3,130 |
| Civil Service | £34,434 | £24,937 – £97,819 | 15 |
| Councils | £32,554 | £10,081 – £121,994 | 671 |
| Police & emergency | £28,191 | £25,185 – £57,528 | 12 |
| Schools | £25,583 | £10,052 – £72,024 | 291 |
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 North West (837, 15%), South East (753, 13%), London (645, 12%), West Midlands (517, 9%), South West (513, 9%) and East of England (488, 9%).
Closing soonest
- Mental Health Practitioner — NHS: Inclusion · Featherstone, WV10 7QD · £39959.00 to £48117.00 · closes 27 July
- Area Countryside Officer — Councils: Northumberland County Council · County Hall, Morpeth, United Kingdom · £35,412 - £39,152 · closes 27 July
- Minibus Driver — Schools: Edgeborough School · Frensham · £14 to £15 · closes 27 July
- Occupational Therapist — NHS: Midlands Partnership NHS Foundation Trust · Stafford, ST16 3AG · £32073.00 to £39043.00 · closes 27 July
- Hospitality Event Supervisor — Councils: Newcastle City Council · Newcastle Upon Tyne · £32,597 to £35,412 · closes 27 July
- Teaching Assistant — Schools: Sapientia Education Trust · Eye · £25,185 to £25,989 · closes 27 July
- Clinical, Forensic or Counselling Psychologist - Cove — NHS: Cornwall Partnership NHS Foundation Trust · Redruth, TR15 3ER · £49387.00 to £64750.00 · closes 27 July
- School Nurse — Schools: Uppingham School · Uppingham · £29,155 to £31,545 · closes 27 July
- Practice Nurse — NHS: Primary Care Sheffield · Sheffield, S20 1HQ · £39787.84 to £44247.89 · closes 27 July
- Band 8b Principal Practitioner Psychologist – Steps to Recovery — NHS: Birmingham and Solihull Mental Health NHS Foundation Trust · Solihull, B92 7JQ · £66582.00 to £77368.00 · closes 27 July
- Advanced Physiotherapy Practitioner — NHS: Cora Health Group Limited · Westminster, SW1P 2PF · £56160.00 to £65517.00 · closes 27 July
- Advanced MSK Clinician — NHS: Cora Health Group Limited · Hammersmith & Fulham, W14 0LJ · £44805.00 to £61156.00 · closes 27 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._