Careers at the Vehicle Certification Agency

Accelerate your career at the VCA and help drive a safer, more environmentally friendly future. You can make a difference to society, in the UK and overseas, by joining our dynamic, innovative and inclusive team.

This work has a huge social impact, helping to assure that products are safe, clean and secure.​

Welcome

By pursuing a career at the VCA you will get an opportunity to directly touch the lives of literally millions of people both in the UK and overseas. As our name suggests, our core activity is witnessing tests and issuing certification to new vehicles, systems, and components. This work is vital in ensuring that the right standards are met, both at the time of manufacture and on into the future.

You will be a part of our dedicated team, one that consists of a broad range of disciplines, from engineering to auditing, finance, communications, human resources, and administration, to name a few. We pride ourselves on working together to achieve shared goals. Our varied work provides many opportunities for continued learning and upskilling, supported by world-leading experts and first-hand experience.

Delivering our services in the UK and overseas offers additional benefits, including working directly with colleagues and customers across the globe. Travel is also possible with some of our roles, which again offers great opportunities to experience new things.

You are considering joining the agency at a particularly exciting time. Technology is advancing at its fastest rate in a generation, particularly in areas such as alternative powertrains, vehicle connectivity and autonomy. Our agency is at the forefront of this change, not only assessing the impact on current standards but working to understand how things will operate in the future.

If you want to be part of our team, we’d love to hear from you.

Entry Routes

Whether you are in your early career, an experienced professional, or looking to change career or retrain, the VCA has a wide range of roles and opportunities for you.

Direct
Entry

From technical roles to vital support functions, there are a range of opportunities.

Graduate
Scheme

Opportunities for graduates to shape the automotive industry’s future.

Apprenticeship Scheme

Gain practical experience and a nationally recognised qualification.

Trainee
Scheme

Upskill or retrain and develop with our new VCA trainee programme.

Entry Routes

Whether you are in your early career, an experienced professional, or looking to change career or retrain, the VCA has a wide range of roles and opportunities for you.

Direct
Entry

From technical roles to vital support functions, there are a range of opportunities.

Graduate Scheme

Opportunities for graduates to shape the automotive industry’s future.

Apprenticeship
Scheme

Gain practical experience and a nationally recognised qualification.

Trainee
Scheme

Upskill or retrain and develop with our new VCA trainee programme.

About the VCA

Staff globally
Type Approval Certificates issued each year
Driving reduction in emissions
VCA Offices Worldwide
Who are the Vehicle Certification Agency?

We are an executive agency of the Department for Transport (DfT) and exist to improve vehicle safety and environmental protection by providing robust testing and certification to national and internationally recognised standards.

We approve most categories of new vehicles from locations in the UK and overseas, working with vehicles of tomorrow. We are also designated to act as the UK authority for the certification of packaging and intermediate bulk containers used for the transport of dangerous goods.

With more than 40 years’ experience, we have become one of the largest and well-respected approval bodies around. This position has been built on a reputation for technical expertise and quality, which is at the heart of everything we do.

Our core work is shared across four areas. These are international operations, statutory and technical operations, corporate affairs and finance and resource. As an organisation, we work collaboratively to provide a worldwide service, supporting each other to be the best we can.

What we do

Our core activity is vehicle certification, ensuring that new vehicles, and their systems and components meet the right environmental and safety standards before they go on the road. In carrying out our role, we work with a wide range of people, manufacturers, and stakeholders, across the UK and overseas.

To accomplish the smooth running of our day-to-day operations, we require a diverse workforce who are skilled in delivering a wide range of services across our organisation. From human resources, communications, data analysis, estates, finance, digital services and technology and more.

With our main offices located in Bristol and the Midlands, we can perform most of these services across both sites, and from home with hybrid working. Colleagues in these roles are essential in our overarching core objectives. They make sure everyone has what they need to do their job, report key information internally and externally, recruit new talent into the VCA, engage with colleagues, stakeholders and customers daily and enabling innovation as vehicle technology and the way we work, evolves.

This work has a huge impact across the agency and is the fundamental cog that keeps our wheels turning.

Teams will often join forces, bringing colleagues from different areas of the business together on projects and tasks that require various expertise and skills. This collaboration, along with our shared mission and values, mean we achieve goals collectively, supporting each other along the way.

Joining us, not only will you play a key role in our main activity as a certification agency, but you will also be providing the central services we could not function without.

Our Vision, Mission and Values

Our vision
To be an organisation that is admired and respected for our people, their professionalism and impartiality.

Our mission
Safe, Clean, Secure – Inspiring confidence in vehicle standards through impartial testing and certification.

Our values
Professionalism, Respect, Objectivity, Impartiality, Integrity, Honesty

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

The work we do takes an incredible community of people, with different skills, backgrounds, cultures and identities, which is why it’s important to us all colleagues are offered equal opportunities across VCA. We are passionate about supporting career development and training for diversifying skills and gaining qualifications, helping individuals reach their full potential and career aspirations. The mental and physical wellbeing of our colleagues is equally important to us, and the focus of many campaigns and events we run throughout the year for all colleagues to get involved.

Read more about the Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at the VCA

Your Learning and Career Development with us

Our people are at the forefront of what we do. That is why we invest heavily in the professional development and support of our teams.  From bespoke training packages, professional qualifications and the wider civil service learning platform, we empower our leaders and develop our teams.

From your first day with us, you will have access to a wide ranging learning and development portfolio designed to give you the right tools at the right time. In these ever evolving times, we continue to build on our learning and development portfolio to provide a tailored development agenda for our team’s ever changing needs.

Benefits of working for the VCA

Competitive salary

A competitive salary and a range of potential allowances.

Leave

Up to 30 days annual leave (with a minimum of 25 days). An opportunity to buy and sell annual leave.

A Civil Service Pension

Read more about Civil Service Pensions.

Flexible working

Including flexi-time and home working (subject to operational requirements).

Family friendly policies

Family friendly policies to support maternity, paternity and shared parental leave.

Skills allowance

Earn more with our range of additional annual allowances (Subject to role) including our Engineering Skills Allowance.

Employee discount scheme

Discounts on a range of products and service through our employee discount scheme.

Health and wellbeing support

Access to an Employee Assistance Programme, supporting a range of well-being needs.

Staff recognition

Local Recognition Award payments for individuals or teams.

Free Parking

Free onsite parking and reduced rates for vehicle charging at our larger sites.

Cycle to work scheme

Save money on a new bike and spread the cost over monthly tax-free instalments.

Corporate Clothing

Annual corporate clothing allowance.

Learning and Development

Structured development plans and time for learning and development.

External Training

Opportunities to attend external training courses.

Volunteering time

Up to 3 days per year volunteering time.

Networking Groups

Access to a range of Civil Service and Department for Transport network groups.

Getting Started

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion at the VCA

We encourage applications from anyone who has the skills and attitude to do the role. It’s important everyone is equally treated with the access and support they need to perform their role. 

Applying to the VCA

Support with your application for a job at the VCA.
Help, guidance and tips on what to do when applying as well as further information about life and careers within the civil service.