jobfacts

Podiatrist

Podiatrists — SOC 2020 2256

Podiatrists (formerly known as chiropodists) diagnose and treat ailments and abnormalities of the human foot and lower limb, deal with minor infections, injuries and deformities, and conditions resulting from other major health disorders such as diabetes.

Also calledChiropodistFoot health professionalFoot health practitionerChiropodist-podiatrist
Typical full-time pay£47,7002025 Provisional
People in the job16,000across the UK
Demand for workersNot high
New adverts a month203↓ 12%on last year · 345th of 412

Pay

ONS · ASHE 2025
What full-time podiatrists earn, 2025
£47,700 typicaln/ptop 10%
n/p: top 10% not published by ONS
Show as table
Lowest 10% earn less thanNot published
Lowest 20% earn less thanNot published
25%Not published
Median£47,700
75%Not published
Top 20% earn more thanNot published
Top 10% earn more thanNot published
More than half (62%) of podiatrists work for themselves. These pay figures only cover employees, so they may not reflect what self-employed podiatrists earn.
Typical pay by regionUK median £47,700
North EastNot published by ONS–
North WestNot published by ONS–
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS–
East MidlandsNot published by ONS–
West MidlandsNot published by ONS–
East of EnglandNot published by ONS–
LondonNot published by ONS–
South EastNot published by ONS–
South WestNot published by ONS–
ScotlandNot published by ONS–
WalesNot published by ONS–
Show as table
UK median, £47,700
North EastNot published by ONS
North WestNot published by ONS
Yorkshire and The HumberNot published by ONS
East MidlandsNot published by ONS
West MidlandsNot published by ONS
East of EnglandNot published by ONS
LondonNot published by ONS
South EastNot published by ONS
South WestNot published by ONS
ScotlandNot published by ONS
WalesNot published by ONS
Typical pay over 3 years
  • 2023 £40,300
  • 2024 £44,200
  • 2025 Provisional£47,700
↑ 18% since 2023Provisional figures are revised when ONS publishes the next year’s survey.

Jobs and demand

ONS · Textkernel adverts · DfE

About 203 jobs for podiatrists are advertised each month. The Department for Education rates demand for workers as not high.

New job adverts a month, Jan 2017 to Aug 2026
New advertsMonth not published by ONS (2 in all)
Show as table
Aug 2026182
Jul 2026218
Jun 2026Not published
May 2026226
Apr 2026276
Mar 2026Not published
Feb 2026188
Jan 2026178
Dec 2025105
Nov 2025220
Oct 2025213
Sept 2025223
Aug 2025180
Jul 2025242
Jun 2025226
May 2025287
Apr 2025281
Mar 2025242
Feb 2025240
Jan 2025222
Dec 2024158
Nov 2024260
Oct 2024231
Sept 2024216
Aug 2024259
Jul 2024259
Jun 2024240
May 2024262
Apr 2024255
Mar 2024196
Feb 2024227
Jan 2024243
Dec 2023161
Nov 2023215
Oct 2023211
Sept 2023185
Aug 2023234
Jul 2023272
Jun 2023309
May 2023245
Apr 2023213
Mar 2023275
Feb 2023277
Jan 2023256
Dec 2022212
Nov 2022364
Oct 2022283
Sept 2022264
Aug 2022306
Jul 2022267
Jun 2022279
May 2022344
Apr 2022225
Mar 2022263
Feb 2022243
Jan 2022272
Dec 2021244
Nov 2021279
Oct 2021250
Sept 2021379
Aug 2021330
Jul 2021365
Jun 2021358
May 2021293
Apr 2021287
Mar 2021288
Feb 2021178
Jan 2021205
Dec 2020206
Nov 2020237
Oct 2020381
Sept 2020203
Aug 2020233
Jul 2020172
Jun 2020174
May 2020109
Apr 2020100
Mar 2020232
Feb 2020210
Jan 2020233
Dec 2019132
Nov 2019201
Oct 2019238
Sept 2019228
Aug 2019233
Jul 2019269
Jun 2019235
May 2019214
Apr 2019152
Mar 2019166
Feb 2019158
Jan 2019199
Dec 2018118
Nov 2018158
Oct 2018181
Sept 2018199
Aug 2018185
Jul 2018212
Jun 2018220
May 2018147
Apr 2018149
Mar 2018212
Feb 2018194
Jan 2018240
Dec 2017137
Nov 2017208
Oct 2017156
Sept 2017162
Aug 2017118
Jul 2017188
Jun 2017169
May 2017227
Apr 2017165
Mar 2017222
Feb 2017139
Jan 2017161
Is there a shortage of podiatrists?
Not high

The Department for Education rates demand as not high, elevated or critical, using five indicators. This is its 2025 assessment.

  • Visas grantedAbove usual
  • Online job advertsUsual
  • Wage growthAbove usual
  • Pay against similar jobsUsual
  • Hours workedAbove usual
Vacancies hard to fill because of skills
21%against 27% for all jobs
Broader groupFigure for other health professionals, which includes podiatrists. DfE Employer Skills Survey 2024.
Where the most jobs are advertisedadverts a quarter
London141
Birmingham15
Bristol, City of14
Manchester11
Liverpool10
Dorset9
Cornwall7
Glasgow City7
Sheffield7
Woking7
London is published as one area. Averages leave out quarters ONS withheld.
Where podiatrists are most concentratedShare of local job adverts, compared with the UK.

Recruitment from abroad. Fewer than 10 sponsored work visas were granted for this job from July 2025 to June 2026. Home Office

Who does it

ONS · Annual Population Survey · April 2025 to March 2026
Age of podiatrists
n/p
n/p
23%!
n/p
43%!
n/p
!Small sample: treat with cautionn/p: too few in the survey to publish
Show as table
16–24Not published
25–34Not published
35–4423% (small sample)
45–54Not published
55–6443% (small sample)
65+Not published
Highest qualification
Degree or equivalent78%
Higher education below degree!14%
A levels or equivalent!15%
GCSEs or equivalent!15%
!Small sample: treat with caution
Show as table
Degree or equivalent78%
Higher education below degree14% (small sample)
A levels or equivalent15% (small sample)
GCSEs or equivalent15% (small sample)

Main employers: other human health activities (99%), hospital activities (13%).

How to get in

Hold a degree
78%
as their highest qualification
Registration
HCPC
required to practise: Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Apprenticeships
1
from level 6, a degree apprenticeship
Apprenticeships take
4 years
typically
Self-employed
62%
of people in the job

Routes in

You can get into this job through:

University

You'll need to complete a degree in podiatry approved by the Health and Care Professions Council.

If you already have a degree in a healthcare or science subject, you can apply for an accelerated degree in podiatry.

You might be able to get additional student financial support through the NHS Learning Support Fund.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 or 3 A levels, or equivalent, including biology for a degree

Apprenticeship

You could do the Podiatrist Level 6 Degree Apprenticeship.

This usually takes 4 years to complete as a mix of workplace learning and academic study at an approved university.

Entry requirements

You'll usually need:

  • 2 to 3 A levels, or equivalent, preferably including biology, for a degree apprenticeship

Other ways in

Work your way up

You could start as a podiatry assistant and study part time for a degree to qualify as a podiatrist.

Volunteering

Volunteering in the NHS is a good way to get work experience in healthcare. This can be helpful when you apply for jobs or training.

What you’ll need

  • pass enhanced background checks

Registration and professional bodies

Registration
  • you'll need to register with the Health and Care Professions Council
Career tips

You would be expected to have an understanding of how the NHS values would impact your work, if applying for jobs in the NHS.

Professional and industry bodies

You could join the Royal College of Podiatry for professional development and networking opportunities.

Further information

You can find out more about how to become a podiatrist from Health Careers and the Royal College of Podiatry.

Routes in are from the National Careers Service job profile for podiatrist. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

Apprenticeships

1 for this job
Level 6About 4 yearsDegree

Podiatrist

You gain
BSc (Honours) in Podiatry
Registration
Health and Care Professions Council (HCPC)
Employers may ask for
Typically 3 A levels, a BTEC National Extended Diploma or equivalent access qualification
Details on Skills England

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

The work

ONS · ESCO · O*NET

Typical tasks

  • examines patient’s feet to determine the nature and extent of disorder
  • provides vascular and neurological assessment for the long-term management of chronic disorders and high-risk patients
  • administers local anaesthetic where appropriate
  • treats conditions of the skin, nails and soft tissues of feet by minor surgery, massage and heat treatment, padding and strapping or drugs
  • prescribes, makes and fits pads and other orthotic appliances to correct and/or protect foot disorders
  • those with advanced training may carry out minor surgery on the feet
  • advises patients on aspects of foot care to avoid recurrence of foot problems
  • delivers foot health education to groups such as the elderly, children, the homeless, those with medical problems such as arthritis
  • refers patients who require further medical or surgical attention

Skills

  • ensure safety of healthcare users
  • communicate effectively in healthcare
  • comply with quality standards related to healthcare practice
  • follow clinical guidelines
  • provide health education
  • work in multidisciplinary health teams
  • employ foreign languages in care
  • advise on healthcare users' informed consent
  • apply context specific clinical competences
  • comply with legislation related to health care
  • deal with emergency care situations
  • develop a collaborative therapeutic relationship
  • empathise with the healthcare user
  • interact with healthcare users

Knowledge

  • human physiology
  • human anatomy
  • neurology
  • orthopaedics
  • paediatrics
  • psychology
  • first aid
  • geriatrics

Suits people who like

  • Helping and caring for people
  • Working with ideas and solving problems

Outlook

DfE · Skills Imperative 2035
Broader groupThese projections are for health professionals, a group of 24 jobs that includes podiatrists.
Change in jobs, 2020 to 2035↑ 19%about 310,000 more jobs
Workers needed by 20351.3 millionincluding people replacing those who retire or leave

Sources

Pay
ONS, Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings, 2025 provisional
People in the job, who does it
ONS, Annual Population Survey, April 2025 to March 2026
Job adverts
ONS, online job adverts (Textkernel), to Aug 2026
Demand, skill shortages
Department for Education and Skills England, Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey
Outlook
The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE
Routes in
National Careers Service job profiles
Apprenticeships, qualifications
Skills England occupational maps
Skills, interests
ESCO classification of the European Commission; O*NET data, U.S. Department of Labor (CC BY 4.0, modified)
Visas
Home Office, immigration system statistics

Figures as of 10 October 2026.

Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: Office for National Statistics licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Occupations in demand and the Employer Skills Survey: Department for Education and Skills England. Immigration system statistics: Home Office. Contains public sector information from the National Careers Service licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

© Skills England 2025. This information is licensed under the Open Government Licence https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/

Source: The Skills Imperative 2035 (2024), NFER/Nuffield/DfE/IER/CE.

This service uses the ESCO classification of the European Commission.

This service includes information from the O*NET 31.0 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. This service has modified all or some of this information. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. CC BY 4.0 licence.

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