8 November 2024 | 0 minutes read

A key local employer

Our role in the community

We have a workforce 7,000 strong, the majority of whom live within 20 miles of our site.

We have a wide programme of engagement with 37 UK universities, and five strategic alliances with the universities of Bristol, Cambridge, Cranfield, Heriot-Watt, and Imperial. In addition, 93 ‘year in industry’ posts are provided to UK universities by AWE.

We also have an apprenticeship and graduate programme where successful applicants benefit from the opportunity to work in world-class facilities. Those completing our programmes have gone on to a wide variety of roles within AWE. Our Skills Academy has a long and proud history, with thousands of young people completing their apprenticeships since it opened its doors more than 70 years ago; many are now in senior leadership roles at AWE.

Our recently appointed Executive Director of Estates and Liabilities, Mark Hedges, began his career with us in 1985 as an apprentice. Almost 40 years later he is still with us, driving change but now at executive level.

More news

What’s it like being on a Business Administration apprenticeship?

My name is Sophie and I am a Business Administration Apprentice. I chose AWE because it seemed like a reliable company to work for with many career paths I could venture down. I chose the business administration apprenticeship because it is more suited to my skills and, as well as getting a qualification, I get […]

Press Releases

6 Mar 2025

AWE Aldermaston site returns to routine regulatory attention for safety

AWE welcomes today’s (6 March) announcement by the Office for Nuclear Regulation (ONR) that AWE’s Aldermaston site has been returned to routine regulatory attention for safety. This move acknowledges the significant and sustained safety improvements and efforts of AWE teams over more than a decade to improve the safety of its operations and to bring […]

Celebrating Professor Jackie Akhavan on International Women’s Day

To commemorate this year's International Women's Day on March 8, we pay tribute to Professor Jackie Akhavan, for her remarkable and steadfast contribution to AWE’s mission and the wider nuclear enterprise over the past three decades.