The Ministry of Defence has highlighted early signs of progress in retaining engineering and technical specialists across the Armed Forces, following a written parliamentary question from Conservative MP Matt Vickers.
In a response published on Tuesday, defence minister Louise Sandher-Jones said overall recruitment and retention trends were moving in a positive direction, with intake now exceeding outflow for the first time since early 2021. Over the 12 months to 1 October 2025, Armed Forces recruitment rose by 13 percent compared with the previous year, while departures fell by 8 percent. Applications, she added, continue to increase.
However, the minister acknowledged that retaining specialist skills remains difficult, particularly in areas such as engineering, cyber, digital and medical roles, where the Armed Forces face intense competition from the wider labour market. She said the department was responding through a package of targeted retention measures aimed at making military careers more competitive and flexible. These measures include revised terms of service, a modernised allowance system, bespoke pay structures, specialist skills payments and Targeted Financial Retention Incentives. A pilot ‘total reward’ approach for engineers is also under way, intended to better reflect the full value of military service beyond basic pay.
Sandher-Jones pointed to early feedback from a pay supplement trial focused on critical engineering skills, which suggests a significant improvement in retention intent. “Early feedback from our pay supplement trial for critical engineering skills indicates a 53% increase in intention to remain,” she said, while cautioning that further work is still required.
The minister also highlighted the expansion of the Perceived Value of the Offer survey, which was initially piloted with engineers in 2024 and has since been rolled out across all Regular personnel. The survey is designed to capture what service members value most in their employment package, with the results feeding directly into future reward and retention policies.
