UK Defence Standards (Def Stans)
UK > UK excluding London
The table below provides summary statistics and contractor rates for jobs advertised in the UK excluding London requiring Def Stans skills. It covers contract job vacancies from the 6 months leading up to 31 December 2025, with comparisons to the same periods in the previous two years.
| 6 months to 31 Dec 2025 |
Same period 2024 | Same period 2023 | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | 349 | 323 | 384 |
| Rank change year-on-year | -26 | +61 | +96 |
| Contract jobs citing Def Stans | 50 | 33 | 24 |
| As % of all contract jobs in the UK excluding London | 0.27% | 0.23% | 0.12% |
| As % of the Quality Assurance & Compliance category | 1.66% | 1.46% | 0.80% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 6 | 4 | 18 |
| 10th Percentile | - | £408 | £554 |
| 25th Percentile | £450 | £475 | £563 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £550 | £545 | £603 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +1.01% | -9.63% | +20.50% |
| 75th Percentile | £675 | £592 | £639 |
| 90th Percentile | - | £642 | £721 |
| UK median daily rate | £500 | £545 | £575 |
| % change year-on-year | -8.17% | -5.30% | +15.00% |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 37 | 19 | 4 |
| 10th Percentile | - | £59.50 | £22.62 |
| 25th Percentile | £33.50 | £61.25 | £37.41 |
| Median hourly rate | £65.00 | £65.00 | £52.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | - | +25.00% | +4.00% |
| 75th Percentile | - | - | £57.50 |
| 90th Percentile | £67.25 | £73.00 | - |
| UK median hourly rate | £65.00 | £65.00 | £52.00 |
| % change year-on-year | - | +25.00% | +4.00% |
All Quality Assurance and Compliance Skills
UK excluding London
Def Stans falls under the Quality Assurance and Compliance category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring quality assurance or compliance skills in the UK excluding London.
| Contract vacancies with a requirement for quality assurance or compliance skills | 3,019 | 2,258 | 3,003 |
| As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK excluding London | 16.50% | 15.45% | 15.50% |
| Number of daily rates quoted | 1,913 | 1,283 | 1,874 |
| 10th Percentile | £300 | £210 | £260 |
| 25th Percentile | £400 | £355 | £400 |
| Median daily rate (50th Percentile) | £490 | £475 | £500 |
| Median % change year-on-year | +3.16% | -5.00% | +5.26% |
| 75th Percentile | £575 | £575 | £600 |
| 90th Percentile | £674 | £650 | £688 |
| UK median daily rate | £500 | £500 | £525 |
| % change year-on-year | - | -4.76% | - |
| Number of hourly rates quoted | 257 | 144 | 180 |
| 10th Percentile | £13.60 | £14.70 | £13.29 |
| 25th Percentile | £17.48 | £19.96 | £17.14 |
| Median hourly rate | £20.69 | £29.00 | £33.00 |
| Median % change year-on-year | -28.66% | -12.12% | +57.14% |
| 75th Percentile | £63.40 | £63.75 | £66.37 |
| 90th Percentile | £73.75 | £73.38 | £83.40 |
| UK median hourly rate | £25.15 | £29.00 | £33.00 |
| % change year-on-year | -13.28% | -12.12% | +45.47% |
Def Stans
Job Vacancy Trend in the UK excluding London
Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Def Stans relative to all contract IT jobs advertised in the UK excluding London.
Def Stans
Daily Rate Trend in the UK excluding London
Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK excluding London citing Def Stans.
Def Stans
Daily Rate Histogram in the UK excluding London
Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Def Stans in the UK excluding London over the 6 months to 31 December 2025.
Def Stans
Hourly Rate Trend in the UK excluding London
Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in the UK excluding London citing Def Stans.
Def Stans
Hourly Rate Histogram in the UK excluding London
Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Def Stans in the UK excluding London over the 6 months to 31 December 2025.
Def Stans
Contract Job Locations in the UK excluding London
The table below looks at the demand and provides a guide to the median contractor rates quoted in IT jobs citing Def Stans within the UK excluding London region over the 6 months to 31 December 2025. The 'Rank Change' column provides an indication of the change in demand within each location based on the same 6 month period last year.
| Location | Rank Change on Same Period Last Year |
Matching Contract IT Job Ads |
Median Daily Rate Past 6 Months |
Median Daily Rate % Change on Same Period Last Year |
Live Jobs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| South West | +4 | 36 | - | - | 19 |
| East of England | -14 | 6 | £650 | - | 8 |
| South East | - | 5 | £450 | - | 4 |
| Wales | - | 3 | - | - | |
| Def Stans UK |
|||||
Def Stans
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in the UK excluding London by Category
The following tables expand on the one above by listing co-occurrences grouped by category. They cover the same employment type, locality and period, with up to 20 co-occurrences shown in each category: