Who we are
Founded in 1854, the Met Office is the UK’s national meteorological service. We provide critical weather services and world-leading climate science to help people make better decisions to live and work safely and productively.
We support the UK Government, businesses, emergency responders and the public to make informed short and long-term choices, making the world a safer and more resilient place today, tomorrow, and in the future.
We operate from our iconic headquarters in Exeter, and from 60 locations around the UK and the world, including Gibraltar, the Falkland Islands and even Antarctica. The Met Office is recognised as one of the world’s most accurate forecasters, using over 10 million weather observations every day, an advanced atmospheric model, and a high-performance supercomputer to create 3,000 tailored daily forecasts and briefings.
Our culture, people and values
Our culture, people and values are at the heart of everything we do, and together they help make the Met Office a great place to work.
When we talk about our values, we’re talking about what we stand for, why we come to work, our behaviours, and how we recruit talented people to help us achieve our aims for the future. Our values were created by our employees, and truly represent what is important to all of us. They are a unique expression of our Met Office personality, and they are embedded into our recruitment process. So, we can attract and employ people whose personal values and behaviours match ours.
Our experts span a range of disciplines including weather forecasting and observation, climate science, technology and IT, engineering, customer and stakeholder management, and corporate services. They come from different professional and personal backgrounds with one thing in common – they are interested in solving problems and helping us make a difference.
We are committed to being an inclusive organisation, and providing a working culture that actively values and unlocks the potential of an equal and diverse workforce. We believe our people are fundamental to what we do, and understand great minds don’t always think alike.
Why join us
We invest in our people, so they can thrive, develop and be the best they can be. We actively encourage positive physical and mental health in the workplace, with a cycle-to-work scheme, on-site gym, and an employee assistance programme to support anyone who may be experiencing personal challenges. We also prioritise learning and development by offering support for everyone to enhance their personal, professional and corporate effectiveness.
Alongside an inclusive, purpose-driven and thriving culture, we offer a competitive mix of benefits and rewards. These include an instant reward scheme, discounts at leading supermarkets and high street retailers, and generous employer pension contributions. We do our best to agree a suitable working pattern for everyone, being as flexible as we can, and we give our staff plenty of time off.
So why not join us, and help us deliver extraordinary impact and benefit across the globe?
Tech focus: without technology the Met Office wouldn’t be where it is today. Technology is key to every area of our work – from science and forecasting to marketing and consultancy. Without it, our world-leading meteorological forecasts and products would not exist, and our vision; to be recognised as the best weather and climate change service in the world would be, quite simply, unachievable.
Engineering: the need for high-quality observational data and for new ways to meet customers’ data requirements is bigger than ever. As an engineer at the Met Office you’ll be working with technology that’s at the forefront of its field. We want our engineers to enjoy a journey of continuous learning and technical discovery, so, we invest in career development and support our engineers through Professional Registration to gain Engineering Technician, Incorporated Engineer or Chartered Engineer status.
Science: behind our world-leading numerical models & state-of-the-art software are talented scientists & scientific software engineers. We deliver influential projects around the world and look for scientists who hunt for solutions. We put emphasis on career development. Our scientific skills framework provides a career map to show the span of opportunities. Whether you’re a foundation scientist, a scientific consultant or a software engineer there’s something for you.
Meteorology: delivering world-leading, accurate weather forecasts is at the heart of what we do. Operational delivery of our 24/7 services is managed through the Observations and Forecasting & Service Delivery Programmes. Together with other teams they provide forecasts that add value to customer activities Nowhere else in the UK offers such expansive career opportunities in operational meteorology. Roles include operational meteorologists, customer service, observational monitoring and specialist trainers.