Science becoming increasingly important across all sectors of the UK economy and society

A new report from the Science Council has revealed that 20% of the UK workforce depends on science skills to do their job, with 5.8 million people now employed in science-based roles; furthermore, this figure is projected to rise to 7.1 million by 2030.

This new piece of research offers a much higher level of detail than has been available previously, and particularly looks at the science workforce in its entirety, rather than just those in a narrow band of so-called science sectors.

Diana Garnham, CEO of the Science Council, commented: "Secondary scientists can be found, literally, everywhere in the economy using science in their jobs in lots of different ways. The research begins to explain where science graduates go and why there is such huge demand for people with science qualifications. But it also demonstrates the value of studying science – a message that underpins our careers awareness work and the website Future Morph – and indicates how many more people we need with these skills by 2030."

Some of the other key findings from the report are listed below:

A copy of the illustrative chart is attached and the Full Report and an Executive Summary can be downloaded from the Science Council website.