Salaries and Costs
Recruiters in Cumbria place van drivers, HGV class 2, and class 1 trucking staff on temporary, contract, and permanent terms. Van jobs often sit at £11 to £13 per hour in towns such as Carlisle, Penrith, and Kendal. Class 2 drivers tend to see £13 to £16 per hour with multi-drop routes across the A66 and A590. Class 1 night trunking or RDC work can reach £16 to £20 per hour, with night out or meal allowances added where journeys run past the Central Belt or into Scotland. PCV and minibus rates vary with route type and school contracts, with £12 to £16 per hour being common. Permanent salaries for transport planners and shift supervisors often range from £28,000 to £38,000, with transport managers earning between £40,000 and £55,000, depending on fleet size and compliance scope. Employers will see recruitment fees quoted as a percentage of the starting salary, often 12% to 20% for experienced hires, with temp margins built into the hourly charge rate to cover holiday pay, NI, and recruiter costs. Clear briefs on shift patterns, start windows, and route types will help agencies price accurately and find employees faster.
Qualifications
Recruitment consultants will ask for the right licence categories, with Cat B for vans, C1 for 7.5t, C for rigid, and C+E for artics. Driver CPC must be current, with periodic training recorded. Some staffing agencies will request ADR for tanker or hazardous loads, HIAB or lorry loader tickets for builders merchants, and Moffett for mounted forklifts. Digital tachograph cards must be valid, and right-to-work checks need to be in place before assignment. PCV roles require D or D1, with school transport often needing an enhanced DBS. Employers should brief new starters on site inductions, yard rules, and PPE so they arrive ready to work.
Regional or geographic variations
Cumbria’s spread of rural and coastal communities changes how routes are planned and staffed. Carlisle and Kingmoor Park serve M6 freight and RDC traffic. Penrith links east to the A66 for cross Pennine drops. Barrow-in-Furness and Walney see shipyard and port movements. Workington and Whitehaven support energy and heavy industry near Westlakes Science Park. Kendal and Windermere feed hospitality and retail in the Lake District, where narrow lanes and time windows call for confident van and 7.5t drivers. Agencies will match drivers with local knowledge of gradients, winter conditions, and tourist-season congestion.
Local hiring challenges
Rural distances, early starts, and split shifts can reduce candidate pools for multi-drop, milk rounds, and school routes. Limited public transport makes own transport essential for many depots. Night trunking can be hard to fill near the west coast, while weekend peaks hit parcel networks across Kendal, Penrith, and Carlisle. Recruiters help by pooling standby drivers, running route briefings, and pre-booking site checks, which cuts fall-offs and keeps service levels steady.
Roles and career paths
Employment firms place couriers, van multi drop, 7.5t home delivery, class 2 refuse and trade routes, class 1 trunking, and ADR tanker drivers. Many candidates step from van to 7.5t with C1 training, then move to class 2 and class 1 with agency support and flexible shifts. Office paths include traffic office support, transport planner, and transport manager with Operator Licence knowledge. Night-shift experience and RDC knowledge often fast-track drivers into lead driver or trainer roles.
Seasonal trends or themes
Tourism drives spikes in parcel and food deliveries from Easter to October across the Lake District. Q4 parcel peaks lift demand for van and 7.5t drivers on temporary and contract work. Agriculture and forestry create short-term movements during harvest and felling. Winter brings weather-related delays on the A66 and across high passes, so agencies favour drivers with snow-chain know-how, alternative routes, and realistic ETAs.
Regulatory and compliance standards
Recruiters and local employers must comply with drivers’ hours, Working Time rules, and tachograph use. Driver CPC must be up to date, and fitness-to-drive checks must be recorded. Some contracts require familiarity with FORS or CLOCS, site card inductions, or safety briefings for quarries and waste sites. School services and healthcare deliveries may trigger DBS checks. Employers should share incident-reporting lines and near-miss expectations at induction, which helps keep audit trails clean and supports retention.
Common job roles agencies recruit for
Driving recruitment agencies in Cumbria handle van delivery across retail and parcel networks, 7.5t two-man home delivery, class 2 for builders’ merchants and waste, class 1 trunking to hubs on the M6, ADR fuel and chemical tankers, HIAB deliveries for construction, and PCV for school and service routes. Many agencies maintain standby pools for night trunking, weekend parcel surges, and last-mile coverage, helping local businesses maintain service levels during peaks.
Hard to fill positions
ADR tanker drivers, night class 1 truckers with RDC experience, rural multi-drop van drivers who can handle heavy lifts, and PCV drivers for split shift school routes tend to be the hardest seats to fill. Pay rates, shift premiums, and clean handball details help recruiters secure candidates quickly. Clarity on vehicle age, kit, and yard facilities will aid retention across longer contracts.
Quick facts and frequently asked questions
What licence do I need for 7.5t work in Cumbria?
You will need C1, a valid CPC, and a digital tachograph card for most 7.5t roles.
How do agencies charge for temporary drivers?
You will be quoted an hourly charge rate that covers pay, holiday, NI, and the agency margin, with rates varying by shift and licence type.
Can I hire on a temp-to-perm for class 2 or class 1?
Yes, many recruiters offer a temp-to-perm route after a set number of weeks, with any transfer fee agreed before the assignment starts.
What checks do employers expect before a start date?
Right to work, licence and CPC verification, recent references, and any ADR or HIAB proofs where the job needs extra tickets.
*How can I stand out as a candidate for Class 1 night trunking?
Keep CPC current, note clean infringements, and share RDC cards and recent routes in Carlisle, Penrith, or Tebay to speed up onboarding.