Manchester is named one of the top cities in the UK for graduate jobs
Debut Careers, one of the leading resources for graduate careers, has done the maths and uncovered as many 149 roles currently up for grabs in Manchester - ranking it second in the UK.
With the economy suffering, the UK cuts a pretty forlorn figure right now.
But in reality, it’s not all doom and gloom.
A closer look at the data reveals that young people – a group who’ve been hit particularly hard by the pandemic – are actually well placed to get themselves on the career ladder in Manchester.
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Debut Careers, one of the leading resources for graduate roles in the UK, has done the maths and uncovered as many 149 jobs currently up for grabs in the city and surrounding areas.
The stats rank Manchester as the second best spot in the whole country to find a job fresh out of uni.
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According to the study, London appeared to have the most opportunities, whereas Birmingham, Bristol and Leeds all ranked in the top five.
Northern neighbours Liverpool also made the list – along with Sheffield a little further afield.
The full list of the top 10 cities for graduate jobs, according to Debut, is as follows:
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London
Manchester
Birmingham
Bristol
Leeds
Cambridge
Nottingham
Sheffield
Liverpool
Plymouth
A little more good news: Debut has also stated that the number of opportunities are expected to grow further in the coming months – particularly once graduate employers open up their roles for applications in September.
Michele Trusolino, CEO and Founder of Debut Careers commented: “Finding that first job as a student or a graduate has always been daunting.
“We know there are hundreds of graduate schemes, all with differing entry requirements, and employers and opportunities you have probably never even heard of. That’s why we created Debut and helping students remains at the very core of what we do.
“Given the recent uncertainty around COVID-19 and employers cancelling or changing their internships and graduate programmes, we felt more than ever the need to help.
“Our team has been working hard these past two months and we are proud to announce we have just released an upgrade to our architecture that allows Debut to have every single graduate job and internship in the UK on the platform.
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“We are so excited to be able to build something that will truly serve the student and graduates in what is such a difficult time.”
Visit the Debut platform for more information on the study and available roles in Manchester and beyond.
News
Teen sentenced after deliberately driving into a female police officer in Stockport
Emily Sergeant
A teen who deliberately drove into a female police officer at a retail park Stockport earlier this year has been sentenced.
Harvey Bell was at a retail park on Wilmslow Road in Cheadle back on 25 January 2025 when he seriously injured a Greater Manchester Police (GMP) officer during a shocking incident – which left the officer requiring hospital treatment.
At the time, the 19-year-old from Knutsford was present while police were investigating reports of class C drug use in a car park.
Police parked in front of an Audi and the officer signalled for Bell to remain stationary and turn the engine off, but instead he reversed, and as the officer approached the front windscreen, Bell drove at the officer, knocking her to the ground.
He then proceeded to drive over her legs with both sets of wheels, before heading out of the car park at speed.
#JAILED | A man who deliberately drove into a police officer in Stockport has been jailed.
Harvey Bell (12/08/2005) has been sentenced to 31 months in a Young Offenders Institute and was disqualified from driving for two years.
— Stockport Police (GMP) (@GMPStockport) June 4, 2025
Bell was subsequently arrested the following day and made no comment in his police interview, but then went on to plead guilty to causing serious injury by dangerous driving, as well as possession of cannabis on 27 March 2025.
The teen appeared at Manchester Crown Court this week where he was sentenced to 31 months in a Young Offenders Institute, and was also disqualified from driving for two years – which will take effect when he is released.
“What [Bell] did to me is permanently in the back of my mind, every call I go to, I feel the apprehension, the fear that any incident, no matter how innocuous it appears, can end with being assaulted or hurt,” the officer explained in a powerful victim impact statement read in court.
“This is an unseen result of Bell’s assault on me.”
She continued: “I know that Bell’s abhorrent behaviour is an exception, and the majority of the public we serve do not wish us harm, but assaults on police need to stop. An attack on a police officer is an attack on us all.
“Bell is a danger to society and had total disregard for my life.”
Featured Image – GMP
News
IKEA announces decision to close popular Greater Manchester site
Emily Sergeant
It’s the end of the road for one of IKEA’s popular Greater Manchester sites.
The Swedish furniture giant has announced its decision to close its ‘Plan and Order Point’ over in Stockport in a couple of weeks time.
The store – which is located in Stockport town centre’s Merseyway Shopping Centre – launched to huge success back in March 2023, and at the time, was the second of this ‘test and trial’ format to open in the UK, becoming a smaller space dedicated to kitchen and home planning, as well as ordering items.
IKEA says the closure comes as a result of ‘valuable learnings’ which plan to take this conceptual format in a direction to ‘better suit the needs of UK customers’.
IKEA is closing its close popular Stockport site this month / Credit: Jon Super (via IKEA)
Since the opening of the Stockport Plan and Order Point, IKEA claims it has seen an increased demand for Click and Collect services, a desire by customers to shop a smaller selection of home furnishing accessories, as well as the ability to return goods to physical IKEA units, and this is all something which the current location is unable to offer.
Learning from this change in consumer habits, the company says its future Plan and Order Point openings – including in those in other northern cities like Hull and York – will offer these services.
IKEA says it also remains ‘committed’ to trialling new formats, such as its upcoming small stores, one of which will open in nearby Chester later this year.
Luckily for IKEA fans, the retailer has confirmed that its major Greater Manchester store in Ashton-under-Lyne, as well as the neighbouring store in Warrington, will remain open as normal, offering all the services available at Stockport and more.
The Swedish furniture says the closure comes as a result of ‘valuable learnings’ about customer needs / Credit: Jon Super (via IKEA)
In addition to the upcoming opening of a smaller store in Chester, IKEA has revealed that the North West continues to be an area of interest for future expansion.
“After careful evaluation, we’ve made the difficult decision to close the IKEA Plan and Order Point at Merseyway Shopping Centre,” explained Salma Azad, who is one of IKEA’s Area Managers.
“In the two years since opening, we’ve taken valuable learnings, including how our customers prefer to meet IKEA, and we’ll take these insights into future openings, to serve shoppers in a more impactful way.”
Thanks to last year’s Click and Collect expansion, Stockport residents can now pick up purchases from Tesco Extra Stockport and Tesco Extra Stretford, as well as the Manchester store and the upcoming small store in Chester.
Stockport Plan and Order Point’s final day of trading will be on 16 June.
The Manc -
20th August 2020 
