Recruiter News - February 2026

In this issue: The end of the rainbow... | Top Tips for making your job advert more effective | Did you know? | Are you looking to grow your team? | Employment Rights Act 2025 | Knowledge Transfer Partnership business information sessions | Funded Internship Opportunities – Summer 2026 | Recruiting Recent Graduates – Key Immigration Routes for Employers (UK) | Recruit Now |

The end of the rainbow...

I am based in Devon, and it has literally been raining all year! The upside for me is seeing plenty of rainbows.

In the media, students are being fed the line that graduate jobs are like the pot of gold at the end of such rainbows -something much sought after but impossible to attain. This is just not true!

The latest BBC headline stated, "Over 700,000 graduates out of work and claiming benefits, analysis suggests" Read a little further into the article, and it states, "The latest graduate labour market statistics, published in June, suggest 88% of working-age graduates in England were in employment in 2024. The figure for non-graduates was 68%."

So a better headline would be "Graduates of all ages more likely to be in work".

If you want to help the next generation of graduates into work, then we have internships from Exeter, KTPs and visa information later in the newsletter.

And of course you can always advertise your roles with us too...

➡️Advertise Now

Top Tips for making your job advert more effective

Here are our top tips for making your job advert more effective.

Let us know if there are any you'd add!

➡️Read our TOP TIPS

Did you know?

The British Chambers of Commerce Quarterly Recruitment Outlook shows:

-Recruitment difficulties eased slightly in Q4; however, 70% still report problems hiring staff

- Firms are struggling to invest in staff training

-Labour costs remain the biggest cost pressure for businesses

Employment Rights Act 2025

From April 2026, several major reforms under the Employment Rights Act 2025 will come into force, creating new day-one rights for workers and significantly increasing employer obligations.

These changes will require businesses to update their contacts, policies, and management practices to remain compliant.

Knowledge Transfer Partnership business information sessions

The University of Plymouth is hosting a series of free business information sessions to show how businesses can benefit from a Knowledge Transfer Partnership project. They will also explore other services that are available from the University for businesses.

Online: 27 February and 27 March.

➡️Find Out More

🎓 Funded Internship Opportunities – Summer 2026

The University of Exeter is offering fully-funded summer internships for businesses and organisations based in the South West.

Recruit a student for 35 hours over the summer, with all costs covered by the University via one of the following hugely successful Professional Pathways programmes:

🎭 Pathways to Arts, Culture and Heritage
🤝 Pathways to Charity and Development
📣 Pathways to Marketing

🔗 Find out more and apply here

⏰ Applications close: 31 March 2026

If you’ve been considering bringing in new talent with fresh ideas to your organisation, this could be a great opportunity to kick-start this process. ✨

Recruiting Recent Graduates – Key Immigration Routes for Employers (UK)

When hiring recent international graduates, employers should be aware of the main visa options and sponsorship responsibilities.

➡️Read more Here