Every career starts somewhere. This Social Mobility Day, under the theme Stories Matter, we’re looking beyond job titles to the people and the communities behind them.
Facilities Management is one of the most accessible and inclusive sectors in the UK today. At its heart, it opens doors for people from all walks of life, regardless of background, experience or personal circumstance.
What matters is where those opportunities show up and who they reach. Because social mobility is about more than employment. It’s about access to opportunity and making sure that where someone starts in life doesn’t determine where they can go.
Whether someone is entering the workforce for the first time, returning after a break, or overcoming barriers to employment, there is a place for them here.
Local Jobs for Local People
Our approach starts with a simple belief: the communities we work in should benefit from the jobs we create.
We are intentional about who we reach, so that opportunity is genuinely accessible in local communities. In practice, that means:
- Running local, volume recruitment events in the communities where our contracts sit.
- Ringfencing opportunities for people who may otherwise be overlooked.
- Working with local partners to reach people who aren’t already in conventional recruitment channels.
It’s about visibility as much as access, making sure people know these jobs are genuinely for them.
A Story from East London
A recent programme we delivered with the University of East London shows what this looks like in action.
We recruited 50 people into summer cleaning roles. The focus was on who those roles reached. We deliberately targeted candidates living in Tower Hamlets, Hackney, Newham and Stratford.
That direction was intentional. It connects directly to a promise made around London 2012: that the regeneration of East London would invest in communities and in the people already living there, delivering real opportunity alongside physical change.
Our approach reflected that same principle. Rather than widening the net, we kept the opportunity local, ensuring people living in these boroughs could access flexible, paid work right on their doorstep.
It was a practical example of what “local jobs for local people” looks like when it’s done properly: intentional, targeted, and delivered in partnership.
“Facilities Management creates genuine, accessible opportunities for people from all backgrounds to enter and progress in the workforce. Having seen first-hand the recent campaign delivered with the University of East London, I was incredibly impressed by both the calibre of candidates and the value of working with strong local employability partners.
“It’s a powerful reminder that when we focus on local communities and remove barriers, we don’t just fill roles, we create meaningful pathways into employment and long-term careers.”
Kieran Hand
Hiring Manager, OCS
No Limits in FM
Facilities Management is one of the few sectors where career progression is genuinely open-ended. Many colleagues begin in frontline roles and go on to build careers in supervision, management, specialist services and leadership.
There are no fixed pathways here, only opportunities to grow.
Why Stories Matter
Inclusive hiring isn’t a standalone initiative for OCS. It’s embedded in how we operate every day. By focusing on local recruitment, removing barriers and creating accessible entry points, we’re helping to drive true social mobility at scale.
Because behind every role is a person with ambitions, potential and aspirations. And when opportunity is accessible, stories can change, and so can futures.
