To help the UK space sector address the current skills challenges, the Space Partnership has collated the available relevant data to understand the skills pipeline from education through to the space workforce. The Space Partnership Skills Dashboard, published on our website today, will inform discussions on potential skills interventions at the Space Skills Advisory Panel and across the wider UK space sector.
The dashboard brings together a range of publicly available quantitative data, covering schools and Further and Higher Education Institutes across all four devolved governments. The education data is complemented by data on the current UK space workforce, including from the UK Space Agency’s commissioned Size and Health of the UK Space Industry reports and Space Skills Surveys.
The dashboard includes three high-level overviews:
- Education: presents datasets from schools, colleges and universities to highlight the volume of students progressing through the education system.
- Space Aligned Qualifications: The Space Partnership has classified the Education data to identify how many individuals have studied:
- Space Specific: Courses consistent with the qualifications most prevalent across the current UK space workforce, for example Engineering (Aerospace, Electrical, Mechanical), Physics
- Space Relevant: Courses such as Computer Science, Mathematics and Environmental Sciences
- Space General: Courses that support the wider operation of UK space sector organisations, for example Business, Law, Finance, Marketing
- Current UK Space Workforce: draws from the Size and Health of the UK Space Sector, Space Skills Survey, Space Census and Space Partnership commissioned analysis on open roles in the space sector from SpaceCareers.uk.
Ben Stern, Chair of the Space Skills Advisory Panel, welcomed the dashboard:
“The Space Partnership Skills Dashboard is an excellent resource to help understand the current UK space workforce. The dashboard provides a strong foundation for the Space Skills Advisory Panel to identify and prioritise the collective action needed to address skills challenges and opportunities across the UK space sector.
The UK space sector attracts strong interest from students, graduates and apprentices. The dashboard shows that the pipeline of emerging talent is healthy, with significant numbers coming through STEM and space-aligned education pathways across the UK.
At the same time, the evidence highlights a clear challenge for the sector, employers are increasingly looking for experienced and specialist personnel, particularly at mid-career level. The continued growth and long-term continuity of programmes will play an important role in supporting the recruitment, development and retention of the experienced workforce needed to deliver the UK’s long-term space ambitions.
Addressing that challenge will require continued collaboration between industry, government and academia to create sustainable career pathways and support the long-term growth and competitiveness of the UK space sector.”
Dr Joanna Hart, Space Partnership Director explained:
“The data presented across the dashboard comes from different sources, which do not necessarily align, meaning the dashboard cannot be viewed as a direct pipeline. However, taken together the data suggests:
- The number of people coming through the education system is strong, even when considering those undertaking space specific apprenticeships or degree courses.
- The current number of opportunities available for people at the start of their career (~300 per year) is low compared to the size of the UK space sector (34,180 excluding Direct-to-Home). I would note the available data is limited to the research commissioned by the Space Partnership, although confirmed as the right order of magnitude by the Space Skills Advisory Panel.
- The greatest skills challenges are at mid-career where companies are looking to fill positions with experienced and specialist personnel. Due to the limited number of early career positions, it is likely the skilled people are recruited from the current UK space workforce, adjacent sectors or from abroad”
The recently launched 2026 UK Space Skills Survey will improve the available evidence, so organisations across the UK space sector are encouraged to contribute. Once published the results of the Survey, along with the upcoming publication of the Size and Health of the UK Space Industry 2025 report, will be included in the dashboard. The dashboard will be updated and shared on the Space Partnership website twice a year.
The Space Partnership will host an online event on Wednesday 11 November, (13:00-14:30), to provide an overview of the dashboard and explain the detailed information behind it. Registration is available here.
For more details on the dashboard, or to share any feedback, please contact info@spacepartnership.org.uk
