Security Cleared Contract Job Trends in Reading

Security Clearance
Berkshire > Reading

The table below provides summary statistics for contract job vacancies advertised in Reading with a requirement for Security Cleared qualifications. It includes a benchmarking guide to the contractor rates offered over the 6 months leading up to 23 December 2025, comparing them to the same period in the previous two years.

6 months to
23 Dec 2025
Same period 2024 Same period 2023
Rank 2 4 1
Rank change year-on-year +2 -3 +3
Contract jobs citing Security Cleared 183 209 303
As % of all contract jobs in Reading 24.86% 21.41% 30.58%
As % of the Qualifications category 67.28% 63.72% 72.66%
Number of daily rates quoted 136 123 213
10th Percentile £255 £402 £205
25th Percentile £333 £554 £213
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £625 £550
Median % change year-on-year -20.00% +13.64% -3.51%
75th Percentile £538 £675 £615
90th Percentile £612 £738 £660
Berkshire median daily rate £475 £585 £525
% change year-on-year -18.80% +11.43% -8.70%
Number of hourly rates quoted 19 3 12
10th Percentile £65.00 £61.61 £58.86
25th Percentile £76.00 £61.67 £60.59
Median hourly rate £90.00 £63.15 £63.29
Median % change year-on-year +42.52% -0.22% +5.48%
75th Percentile £97.50 £69.80 £66.77
90th Percentile £121.77 £72.84 £74.50
Berkshire median hourly rate £72.00 £61.78 £63.00
% change year-on-year +16.55% -1.94% +117.24%

All Academic and Professional Certifications
Reading

Security Cleared falls under the Academic Qualifications and Professional Certifications category. For comparison with the information above, the following table provides summary statistics for all contract job vacancies requiring academic qualifications or professional certifications in Reading.

Contract vacancies requiring academic qualifications or professional certifications 272 328 417
As % of all contract IT jobs advertised in Reading 36.96% 33.61% 42.08%
Number of daily rates quoted 183 176 287
10th Percentile £255 £314 £205
25th Percentile £369 £475 £319
Median daily rate (50th Percentile) £500 £600 £525
Median % change year-on-year -16.67% +14.29% -4.55%
75th Percentile £550 £663 £619
90th Percentile £625 £738 £675
Berkshire median daily rate £475 £550 £500
% change year-on-year -13.64% +10.00% -9.09%
Number of hourly rates quoted 23 3 12
10th Percentile £66.00 £61.61 £58.86
25th Percentile £81.00 £61.67 £60.59
Median hourly rate £90.00 £63.15 £63.29
Median % change year-on-year +42.52% -0.22% +5.48%
75th Percentile £97.50 £69.80 £66.77
90th Percentile £118.62 £72.84 £74.50
Berkshire median hourly rate £68.50 £61.50 £63.00
% change year-on-year +11.39% -2.39% +137.74%

Security Cleared
Job Vacancy Trend in Reading

Historical trend showing the proportion of contract IT job postings citing Security Cleared relative to all contract IT jobs advertised in Reading.

Security Cleared job vacancy trend in Reading

Security Cleared
Daily Rate Trend in Reading

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in Reading citing Security Cleared.

Contractor daily rate distribution trend for jobs in Reading citing Security Cleared

Security Cleared
Daily Rate Histogram in Reading

Daily rate distribution for jobs citing Security Cleared in Reading over the 6 months to 23 December 2025.

Daily rate histogram for Security Cleared in Reading

Security Cleared
Hourly Rate Trend in Reading

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in Reading citing Security Cleared.

Contractor hourly rate distribution trend for jobs in Reading citing Security Cleared

Security Cleared
Hourly Rate Histogram in Reading

Hourly rate distribution of jobs citing Security Cleared in Reading over the 6 months to 23 December 2025.

Hourly rate histogram for Security Cleared in Reading

Security Cleared
Co-Occurring Skills & Capabilities in Reading 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:

Application Platforms
1 5 (2.73%) Microsoft Exchange
2 2 (1.09%) SharePoint
3 1 (0.55%) CMS
3 1 (0.55%) Confluence
3 1 (0.55%) Drupal
3 1 (0.55%) Skype for Business
3 1 (0.55%) WordPress
Applications
1 2 (1.09%) Microsoft Office
2 1 (0.55%) Microsoft Excel
2 1 (0.55%) Microsoft PowerPoint
Business Applications
1 3 (1.64%) SAP S/4HANA
2 2 (1.09%) SAP HCM
2 2 (1.09%) SAP PS
3 1 (0.55%) Infor CloudSuite Industrial (formerly SyteLine)
3 1 (0.55%) Oracle ERP
3 1 (0.55%) Primavera
3 1 (0.55%) SAP EWM
3 1 (0.55%) SAP QM
Cloud Services
1 36 (19.67%) Azure
2 33 (18.03%) AWS
3 15 (8.20%) OneDrive
4 13 (7.10%) GCP
5 12 (6.56%) Entra ID
6 9 (4.92%) Microsoft 365
7 5 (2.73%) AWS CloudFormation
8 4 (2.19%) OpenShift
8 4 (2.19%) Power Automate
8 4 (2.19%) Power Platform
9 2 (1.09%) Amazon GuardDuty
9 2 (1.09%) AWS CloudTrail
9 2 (1.09%) AWS Control Tower
9 2 (1.09%) AWS KMS
9 2 (1.09%) PowerApps
9 2 (1.09%) SaaS
9 2 (1.09%) Slack
9 2 (1.09%) Virtual Private Cloud
10 1 (0.55%) Azure AKS
10 1 (0.55%) GitHub Actions
Communications & Networking
1 10 (5.46%) Unified Communications
2 9 (4.92%) 4G
2 9 (4.92%) Wi-Fi
3 6 (3.28%) DNS
3 6 (3.28%) Firewall
4 5 (2.73%) DHCP
4 5 (2.73%) WebEx
5 3 (1.64%) LAN
5 3 (1.64%) Network Security
5 3 (1.64%) TCP/IP
5 3 (1.64%) Wireless
6 2 (1.09%) Cisco Nexus
6 2 (1.09%) DWDM
6 2 (1.09%) SAN
6 2 (1.09%) WLAN
7 1 (0.55%) Ethernet
7 1 (0.55%) SDH
7 1 (0.55%) Skype
7 1 (0.55%) Software-Defined Networking
7 1 (0.55%) VPN
Database & Business Intelligence
1 5 (2.73%) NoSQL
2 2 (1.09%) Power BI
2 2 (1.09%) SQL Server
3 1 (0.55%) Data Hub
3 1 (0.55%) MySQL
3 1 (0.55%) PostgreSQL
Development Applications
1 7 (3.83%) JIRA
2 3 (1.64%) Jenkins
3 2 (1.09%) Git
3 2 (1.09%) Visual Studio
4 1 (0.55%) Android Studio
4 1 (0.55%) Bitbucket
4 1 (0.55%) GitLab
4 1 (0.55%) Rational DOORS
4 1 (0.55%) Subversion
General
1 59 (32.24%) Social Skills
2 53 (28.96%) Public Sector
3 15 (8.20%) Analytical Skills
4 8 (4.37%) Finance
4 8 (4.37%) Legal
5 6 (3.28%) Military
6 3 (1.64%) Aerospace
6 3 (1.64%) Telecoms
7 2 (1.09%) Manufacturing
8 1 (0.55%) Electronics
8 1 (0.55%) Influencing Skills
8 1 (0.55%) Marketing
8 1 (0.55%) Pharmaceutical
8 1 (0.55%) Presentation Skills
Job Titles
1 44 (24.04%) Consultant
2 33 (18.03%) Network Consultant
3 17 (9.29%) Architect
4 12 (6.56%) Infrastructure Engineer
4 12 (6.56%) Senior
5 11 (6.01%) Developer
6 9 (4.92%) Analyst
6 9 (4.92%) Project Manager
7 8 (4.37%) Support Engineer
8 7 (3.83%) Infrastructure Support
8 7 (3.83%) Infrastructure Support Engineer
8 7 (3.83%) Technical Architect
9 6 (3.28%) Administrator
9 6 (3.28%) Cloud Engineer
9 6 (3.28%) Tester
9 6 (3.28%) Windows Engineer
9 6 (3.28%) Windows Infrastructure Engineer
9 6 (3.28%) Windows Support Engineer
10 5 (2.73%) AWS Engineer
10 5 (2.73%) Network Engineer
Libraries, Frameworks & Software Standards
1 4 (2.19%) Loki
2 3 (1.64%) .NET
2 3 (1.64%) Web Services
3 2 (1.09%) .NET Core
3 2 (1.09%) AngularJS
3 2 (1.09%) jQuery
3 2 (1.09%) Node.js
3 2 (1.09%) OAuth
3 2 (1.09%) OAuth2
3 2 (1.09%) OpenID
3 2 (1.09%) React
3 2 (1.09%) RESTful
3 2 (1.09%) SAML
4 1 (0.55%) Elastic Stack
4 1 (0.55%) REST
4 1 (0.55%) SailPoint
4 1 (0.55%) scikit-learn
4 1 (0.55%) Spring Boot
4 1 (0.55%) TensorFlow
4 1 (0.55%) Vue
Miscellaneous
1 11 (6.01%) Cloud Native
2 8 (4.37%) PKI
3 6 (3.28%) Management Information System
3 6 (3.28%) PMI
4 5 (2.73%) Driving Licence
4 5 (2.73%) Handset
4 5 (2.73%) Security Operations Centre
5 4 (2.19%) Data Centre
5 4 (2.19%) Onboarding
5 4 (2.19%) Virtual Team
6 3 (1.64%) Cyber Threat
7 2 (1.09%) Data Protection Act
7 2 (1.09%) Enterprise Storage
7 2 (1.09%) Product Ownership
7 2 (1.09%) Self-Motivation
8 1 (0.55%) Cloud Security Posture
8 1 (0.55%) Cyber Security Posture
8 1 (0.55%) Distributed Systems
8 1 (0.55%) Operational Technology
8 1 (0.55%) Security Posture
Operating Systems
1 37 (20.22%) Windows
2 24 (13.11%) Linux
3 14 (7.65%) Windows 10
4 7 (3.83%) Android
5 6 (3.28%) Red Hat Enterprise Linux
6 4 (2.19%) Windows Server
7 2 (1.09%) Apple iOS
8 1 (0.55%) Mac OS
8 1 (0.55%) Windows Server 2012
8 1 (0.55%) Windows Server 2016
8 1 (0.55%) Windows Server 2019
Processes & Methodologies
1 47 (25.68%) Roadmaps
2 43 (23.50%) Stakeholder Engagement
3 40 (21.86%) Migration
4 29 (15.85%) Collaborative Working
5 28 (15.30%) CI/CD
6 22 (12.02%) Problem-Solving
7 21 (11.48%) ITIL
8 20 (10.93%) ITSM
9 19 (10.38%) Agile
9 19 (10.38%) Infrastructure Engineering
10 18 (9.84%) Service Management
11 15 (8.20%) Cybersecurity
12 13 (7.10%) Change Management
12 13 (7.10%) Continuous Improvement
13 12 (6.56%) DevSecOps
13 12 (6.56%) Project Management
13 12 (6.56%) SIEM
14 11 (6.01%) DevOps
14 11 (6.01%) TOGAF
15 10 (5.46%) Risk Management
Programming Languages
1 26 (14.21%) Python
2 20 (10.93%) PowerShell
3 10 (5.46%) Bash
4 7 (3.83%) Java
5 5 (2.73%) C#
5 5 (2.73%) SQL
6 4 (2.19%) JavaScript
7 3 (1.64%) C
8 2 (1.09%) Ada
8 2 (1.09%) Assembly Language
8 2 (1.09%) Kusto Query Language
8 2 (1.09%) MATLAB
8 2 (1.09%) Shell Script
9 1 (0.55%) C++
9 1 (0.55%) Go
9 1 (0.55%) PHP
9 1 (0.55%) R
Qualifications
1 144 (78.69%) SC Cleared
2 24 (13.11%) DV Cleared
3 17 (9.29%) AWS Certification
4 13 (7.10%) Degree
5 10 (5.46%) CISSP
6 7 (3.83%) Azure Certification
6 7 (3.83%) PMP
7 6 (3.28%) MAPM
7 6 (3.28%) PMI Certification
8 5 (2.73%) APMP
8 5 (2.73%) Cisco Certification
8 5 (2.73%) GIAC
8 5 (2.73%) TOGAF Certification
9 4 (2.19%) AWS Certified Solutions Architect
9 4 (2.19%) CCNP
9 4 (2.19%) CFCE
9 4 (2.19%) GCFA
9 4 (2.19%) GCIA
9 4 (2.19%) GCIH
10 3 (1.64%) VMware Certified Professional (VCP)
Quality Assurance & Compliance
1 9 (4.92%) ISO/IEC 27001
2 8 (4.37%) QA
3 7 (3.83%) GDPR
3 7 (3.83%) NIST
4 4 (2.19%) HIPAA
4 4 (2.19%) NCSC
4 4 (2.19%) PMO
5 2 (1.09%) Cyber Essentials
5 2 (1.09%) SLA
6 1 (0.55%) Def Stans
6 1 (0.55%) EU AI Act
6 1 (0.55%) ISO/IEC 27002 (supersedes ISO/IEC 17799)
6 1 (0.55%) JSP 440
6 1 (0.55%) PCI DSS
6 1 (0.55%) PSD2
System Software
1 30 (16.39%) Active Directory
2 8 (4.37%) VMware Infrastructure
3 7 (3.83%) Docker
4 5 (2.73%) vSphere
5 3 (1.64%) Hyper-V
6 2 (1.09%) Virtual Desktop
7 1 (0.55%) Terminal Services
7 1 (0.55%) Virtual Machines
7 1 (0.55%) VMware NSX
Systems Management
1 14 (7.65%) Kubernetes
2 13 (7.10%) SCCM
3 7 (3.83%) Terraform
4 6 (3.28%) Single Sign-On
5 4 (2.19%) Ansible
5 4 (2.19%) Argo
5 4 (2.19%) Cisco CUCM
5 4 (2.19%) Computer Emergency Response Teams
5 4 (2.19%) Grafana
5 4 (2.19%) Kustomize
5 4 (2.19%) Prometheus
6 3 (1.64%) Microsoft Intune
7 2 (1.09%) Active Directory Federation Services
7 2 (1.09%) NetBackup
8 1 (0.55%) Cisco UCCE
8 1 (0.55%) Jamf Pro
8 1 (0.55%) Kibana
8 1 (0.55%) Nessus
8 1 (0.55%) Systems Management Server (SMS)
8 1 (0.55%) vRealize
Vendors
1 47 (25.68%) Cisco
2 41 (22.40%) Microsoft
3 34 (18.58%) Aruba
4 16 (8.74%) ServiceNow
5 13 (7.10%) VMware
6 9 (4.92%) Google
7 6 (3.28%) Red Hat
8 5 (2.73%) LogRhythm
8 5 (2.73%) SAP
9 4 (2.19%) ArcSight
9 4 (2.19%) Splunk
10 3 (1.64%) CrowdStrike
10 3 (1.64%) Nokia
10 3 (1.64%) Oracle
11 2 (1.09%) Citrix
11 2 (1.09%) Dell
11 2 (1.09%) HP
11 2 (1.09%) Juniper
11 2 (1.09%) Tanium
11 2 (1.09%) Veritas