Liverpool Interns 2025–26: Investing in Talent, Driving Regional Growth

Posted on: 1 December 2025 by Gregory Hunter in Employer Connections Blog

The Liverpool Interns programme is one of the most impactful ways the Employer Connections Team connects talent with opportunity. Since 2013, the programme has facilitated over 500 internships, driving graduate retention and SME growth across the Liverpool City Region.

The Liverpool Interns programme is one of the most impactful ways in which the Employer Connections Team connect talent with opportunity, the first iteration of this programme launched in 2013 – since then we’ve facilitated over 500 internships! I’m always filled with excitement to launch this amazing offer our local SMEs because in essence this a passion project bringing together everything that matters to us: community, opportunity, collaboration, talent retention and a shared commitment to helping our region grow stronger.

Liverpool Interns is a fully funded (£1000), project-based initiative that connects local organisations with University of Liverpool students for 80-hour internships. These short-term projects allow businesses to explore innovative ideas, access specialist insights, and trial emerging talent - without financial risk.

Why We Offer Liverpool Interns

Our responsibility doesn’t end at educating students; the University of Liverpool take great pride in supporting local SMEs – we understand it’s part of our civic duty as a local institution. We’re also fully aware of the challenges that local businesses face, with not many having the resource, time, or capacity to explore new ideas, trial emerging skills, or invest in early talent pipelines. Liverpool Interns is a solution to this challenge for many SMEs – a way of attracting emerging talent and hopefully retaining talent in the region. This is where Liverpool Interns becomes transformational – out of the 301 internships we’ve funded since 2021, 32% are still working for LCR based companies and 10% are with the same company they completed their internship with.

The design of this programme is our way of supporting local SMEs tackle real world business challenges, kick-starting projects that may otherwise stall, and bringing academic knowledge and innovative thinking directly into workplaces.

“An intern often brings new ideas and a different way of thinking that can challenge existing processes… The success with the intern showed us that we can ‘prototype’ solutions to business challenges without a long-term commitment.” - Cre8ing Community, LCR SME

Our aim is simple: match student expertise with real business needs, while supporting the sectors that form the economic engine of our region.

SMEs tell us that one of their biggest challenges is accessing new skills and capacity. Our interns bring exactly that – quickly and impactfully. Here’s how organisations benefit:

• Fresh insights and innovative ideas
• Students bring perspectives unshaped by ‘how things have always been done’, enabling businesses to test new approaches and challenge assumptions.
• A chance to ‘try before you buy’
• Short-term projects give SMEs the opportunity to spot future talent and assess fit before committing to permanent roles.
• An affordable investment in talent
• With projects fully funded through the programme, SMEs can unlock high-level skills with minimal financial burden.

Support throughout

The Employer Connections Team will work closely with you to scope meaningful projects and ensure a smooth process from start to finish – from recruitment to internship to potential graduate hire!

Even if the internship doesn’t evolve into a graduate role, our students still benefit from gaining real-world experience, developing professional behaviours, and enhancing the employability skills that carry them into their future careers. And crucially, they gain exposure to the incredible opportunities that exist right here in the Liverpool City Region.

“It helped us recognise that the next generation of talent has skills which can quickly solve problems that we might wrestle with for ages… Employing graduates will be a key growth strategy for us when the time is right.” - Metricomm Ltd, LCR SME

Driving Graduate Retention and Regional Prosperity

Liverpool Interns plays a vital role in our mission to retain more graduates within the region. By creating meaningful links between students and SMEs, we are actively shaping a talent pipeline that supports long-term business growth and strengthens the regional economy.

This year, we’ve aligned with the ambitions of the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority’s Local Growth Plan 2025–2035, ensuring that our efforts meaningfully contribute to the region’s long-term priorities. Ringfencing our funding for six priority growth sectors identified in the LCR Local Growth Plan:

• Health & Life Sciences
• Advanced Manufacturing
• Clean Growth / Net Zero Economy
• Digital, Creative & Technology
• Professional & Business Services
• Visitor Economy

If you would like to find out more about Liverpool Interns or how we can support you with talent attraction, please get in touch employerconnections@liverpool.ac.uk