• Swindon & Wiltshire Economy
• Thursday September 17 2026

Temp billings growth accelerates to joint-quickest in over three years

Temporary hiring in the South West accelerated sharply in August, offering fresh signs that the region’s labour market may be beginning to stabilise despite continued weakness in permanent recruitment.

Billings from the employment of short-term staff rose at the joint-fastest rate since May 2023, matching the increase recorded in May this year, according to the latest KPMG and Recruitment and Employment Confederation (REC) UK Report on Jobs.

The survey, compiled by S&P Global from responses from around 150 recruitment and employment consultancies, also found that permanent placements fell at their slowest rate for more than three years.

However, the decline extended the region’s run of falling permanent appointments to 41 months. Recruiters blamed subdued market conditions and continued hesitation among employers to commit to new hires.

By contrast, stronger client activity and new contracts helped drive the rise in temporary billings. Growth was faster in the South than across the UK as a whole.

“Stronger temp hiring activity, taken alongside a much softer fall in permanent placements, points to employers becoming more willing to recruit – but they’re still generally reluctant to make longer-term commitments,” said David Williams, Bristol office senior partner at KPMG UK.

Permanent vacancies fell for just over three years, although the decline was the slowest since March 2024. Temporary vacancies dropped at a solid pace, matching the rate recorded in June.

The availability of workers continued to increase as redundancies and fewer job opportunities pushed more people into the labour pool. Permanent candidate numbers have now risen consistently for three-and-a-half years, while the supply of temporary workers recorded its slowest growth for 18 months.

Despite the increase in available labour, pay pressures intensified. Starting salaries for permanent workers rose at their fastest rate since January 2024, with recruiters citing competition for highly skilled candidates and demand for niche expertise.

Temporary pay also increased for the tenth consecutive month. Although growth eased slightly from July, it remained among the strongest recorded in more than two years, driven by skills shortages and negotiations with candidates.

Maxine Bligh, interim chief executive of the REC, said the figures showed an economy that was “reasonably optimistic and energised”.

“The slowing of the contraction in permanent placements suggests this may trickle into greater permanent placements in the near future,” she said.

But she warned that the improvement remained fragile, urging the Government to reduce pressures on employers and deliver an Autumn Budget capable of restoring confidence to businesses considering whether to hire and invest.

Dan Barfoot, operations manager a Wiltshire- and Bath-based agency CMD Recruitment, and contributor to the report, said: “The rise in temporary and contract labour has been companies reaction to an upturn but with the cost of employing now they are perhaps looking at this as a short term fix dependent on workload.

“Availability of casual staff is still tight, with a lot of businesses having to look at how they can flex on part-time contracts to combat this, and this is before the seasonal Christmas peak starts to build.

“I think permanent placements with be stalled until 2027, and candidates in the market are moving fast now, so recruitment and onboarding process needs to be well run to secure the best talent.”