The picture is one of growth. More than 1,700 new jobs are being created across the UK defence sector following at least £1.4 billion in foreign direct investment committed since July 2024, according to GOV.UK's defence dividend announcement. That capital doesn't just build hardware. It builds teams, and protective security consultancy sits right in the middle of that demand.
The longer trend backs this up. MOD expenditure with industry supported a total of 272,000 direct jobs in 2023/24, an increase of 11% compared to the previous financial year, as reported in the MOD's supported employment estimates for 2023/24. A year earlier, the total number of MOD-supported UK jobs reached 239,000 in 2022/23, an increase of 6% on the previous financial year, per the MOD's 2022/23 estimates. The direction is clear, and it's upward.
Recruitment itself is moving too. The defence sector continued to be an attractive employer, with surveyed recruitment growing by 17.8% in 2022, according to GOV.UK's analysis of the sector's economic contribution. For anyone weighing up protective security consultancy as a career or a hiring area, that's a strong signal of where the work is heading.
Protective security consultancy covers a broad spread of work: physical security design, risk assessment, threat and vulnerability analysis, counter-terrorism advice and security management for sites and supply chains. These roles grow when the wider sector grows, and the wider sector is growing. With MOD-supported jobs rising to 272,000 in 2023/24, up 11% on the year before, the base of organisations that need security advice keeps widening per the MOD's 2023/24 estimates.
Fresh investment reshapes demand fast. The 1,700 new defence jobs tied to £1.4 billion of foreign direct investment since July 2024 show how quickly capital turns into headcount per GOV.UK. New sites, new programmes and new partnerships all need protective security built in from day one, not bolted on later. That creates steady, repeatable demand for consultants who can assess, design and advise.
The dynamic to watch is pace. With surveyed defence recruitment up 17.8% in 2022 according to GOV.UK, employers are competing for the same security-cleared, experienced professionals. The people who can move between physical, personnel and procedural security are especially sought after, because they let one hire cover several risks.
Start with the clearance reality. Many protective security roles need security vetting, and that takes time, so plan your pipeline early and keep candidates warm while checks complete. Build this into your timeline from the first conversation rather than treating it as an afterthought.
Next, write for the right person, not a wishlist. The strongest consultants often come from policing, the armed forces, intelligence or facilities and risk backgrounds, so describe the problem you need solved and the environment they'll work in, not a rigid list of acronyms. In a market where surveyed recruitment grew 17.8% in 2022 per GOV.UK, a clear, human advert stands out.
Finally, move quickly and assess for judgement. Protective security is about weighing threat against cost and practicality, so use scenario questions over box-ticking. With the sector adding jobs at pace, the organisations that shortlist, interview and decide fastest tend to win the people they want.
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