School of Coding & AI targets 1,000 employees as recruitment drive continues

School of Coding & AI has outlined plans to grow its workforce to 1,000 employees within the next five years as the business continues expanding across the UK and internationally.

The West Midlands-based coding and computer science training provider has recruited 50 employees during the past four months and currently has between 40 and 50 vacancies open. The company said further recruitment is expected later this year as student numbers increase.

School of Coding & AI, which operates from bases in Birmingham and Wolverhampton, currently employs around 170 people. The business added approximately 100 jobs last year while expanding operations in the UK and overseas.

Andrew Wright, recruitment manager at School of Coding & AI, said: “This is a really exciting time to join the organisation. We’re growing quickly, taking on bigger opportunities and building an environment where people can develop, contribute and progress.

“Last year, we recruited across every part of the organisation, from academic leadership and lecturing roles through to student support, operations, finance, HR and recruitment.

“We’re currently rolling out an apprenticeship scheme to create routes into professional work for people finishing college, while also attracting experienced specialists in key areas who can help take the organisation to the next level.

“SoC is also working with the government-backed Shaw Trust to support individuals who have been out of work for more than six months, while developing our own open days and exploring new ways to attract diverse talent.”

The company said recruitment activity is mainly focused in the UK, although hiring is also taking place internationally, including in Dubai and India.

Wright added: “We’ve got 42 current roles and when we go into September, and we take on an additional 2,500 students, there’s going to be a need for even more staff.

“As the business continues to grow, our ambition is clear: to become a Midlands-born unicorn. That creates exciting projects, meaningful challenges and real opportunities for our people to help shape the future of the organisation.

“We are very competitive in the sense of purpose, value and being able to contribute to something where you can physically see the impact you can have on students and other people around you.”

Over the past year, the organisation has opened a £2.5m technology laboratory in Birmingham, redeveloped its Wolverhampton headquarters and launched a campus in Dubai. It has also expanded its Alternative Education Provision programme, which supports young people outside mainstream education through digital skills and coding training.

Founder Manny Athwal said: “Our continued expansion and job creation underlines our role as a key contributor to the growing digital economy in the Midlands, while also helping to address the UK’s widening skills gap in technology and AI.”