2026 Insurance Cross-Company Returner Programme
Are you a UK insurance-sector employer interested in the talent pool of experienced career returners? Career Returners is partnering with the Insurance Families Network to deliver the Insurance Cross-Company Returner Programme 2026, bringing together employers in the sector to provide a supported route back to mid-to-senior roles for high-calibre, experienced professionals.
This is a great way to pilot a small-scale returner programme in a lower-cost way, with the benefit of a larger programme structure and publicity. You’ll also be supporting a programme with the bigger social purpose of increasing returner-inclusive hiring in the UK insurance sector.
About the Programme
The Insurance Cross-Company Returner Programme is aimed at employers in the UK insurance sector. The 6-month returnship provides experienced professionals who have taken career breaks of 18 months or more with a supported route back to mid-to-senior level roles.
We will partner with participating organisations to design, promote, support and manage the programme. Returner hires will take on a real job in one of the participating firms. They will benefit from our Career Returners Coaching Programme as a cohort and will enjoy being part of a cross-company returner peer group.
Having launched in 2024, the Insurance Cross-Company Returner Programme is now in its third year, with the 2025 cohort currently in seat. Participating employers include First Central, Howden, Markel, Chaucer Group and Tokio Marine Kiln. This programme picks up from the Cross-Market Insurance Returner Programme led by Inclusivity in 2021 and 2022.
The cross-company model has proved to be highly successful in other sectors. Our largest cross-company programme, in partnership with the Diversity Project in the Investment Sector, has brought in over 70 returners and has grown year-on-year since 2020, with an average conversion rate of 90%.
How the Programme will benefit your organisation
Employers will benefit from our expertise and guidance, alongside Employer Toolkits, Returner Inclusive Recruitment Training, Interviewer and Line Manager Briefing Sessions and ongoing programme support. As the programme will be designed with a cross-company structure, participating organisations will also benefit from a collaborative forum with other organisations.
The Programme provides employers the opportunity to attract high calibre and experienced returner talent, to increase diversity of gender, age and experience and to address skills gaps within your organisation.
How to find out more
The programme will commence with confirmed employers in November, we will launch for applications in January 2026 and the returner participants will join their respective organisation in May.
If you are interested in finding out more about the 2026 programmes, please email Hazel Little on hazel@careerreturners.com or Alicia Paxman on alicia@careerreturners.com
About Career Returners
Career Returners is a social impact organisation working with returners and employers to enable the return to work of professionals after a long career break for caregiving, health or other reasons. Our mission is to make career breaks a valued part of a lifetime career, removing the career break penalty and creating a fairer and more inclusive working world.
We are the market leaders in supporting employers to run best practice returner-inclusive recruitment initiatives. Having pioneered the introductions of returnships into the UK in 2014, we now operate worldwide.
