The UK’s circular economy supported 558,886 jobs and generated more than £53 billion in gross value added in 2024, according to a report by environmental action NGO WRAP. With a transformative shift toward circular practices, the sector could support more than 1 million jobs and deliver an additional £93 billion in gross value added by 2035, the report estimates.
The report, titled “Powering Good Growth: The Circular Economy Opportunity for Jobs, Manufacturing and Every Region of the UK,” says employment in circular economy activities grew from 469,804 in 2014 to 557,639 in 2019. Growth slowed sharply over the following five years, with the total rising by just over 1,200 jobs by 2024. WRAP points to inflation and supply chain instability, as well as policy choices that may constrain circularity, as possible factors behind the slowdown.
Employment trends varied across the UK. Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland recorded growth between 2019 and 2024, while England saw a modest decline. Wales led the increase, followed by Scotland, offsetting reductions in England and leaving little net change across the country. England nevertheless had the largest circular economy workforce, with 467,175 jobs in 2024.
The report also identifies an imbalance between recycling and activities that keep products in use for longer. Recycling accounted for more than 4.9 percent of circular economy job growth from 2019 to 2024, while employment in repair and reuse fell by 2.3 percent and rental and leasing by 0.3 percent. WRAP says repair, refurbishment and reuse can support local businesses and generate more jobs per tonne of material managed than disposal or conventional recycling.
One example highlighted in the report is ACS Clothing, a circular fashion hub in Scotland that works with brands on rental and resale programmes to keep textiles out of landfill. The company has expanded from around 60 employees to more than 160, according to WRAP.
To reach the projected growth, WRAP outlines three possible paths. An incremental approach would build on existing policies and market trends, with improvements in recycling and modest expansion of repair, reuse and service-based business models. A faster adoption scenario would bring stronger policy and market momentum, alongside wider use of remanufacturing, repair, reuse, leasing and rental. The most ambitious option would embed circular principles across manufacturing, consumption and resource management, with remanufacturing and service-based models becoming widespread and bio-refining industries growing at scale.
WRAP says sustained and ambitious policy could help extend the economic benefits of circularity across the UK.
Sources: WWD.