CV personal statement examples (UK)
Updated 31 October 2026 · 9 min read
Below are 15 CV personal statement examples written for the UK: for school leavers and graduates, popular jobs such as care, customer service, teaching and driving, career changers, people returning to work and experienced managers. Each one is three to five lines long, with a short note on why it works.
A good personal statement for a CV says three things: what you do, the proof that you do it well, and the job you want next. Find the example closest to your situation, keep its shape, and fill it with your own details.
Examples for school leavers, college leavers and graduates
When you have little work history, your statement leans on your qualifications, a placement, family or part-time work, and what you have done outside the classroom. Name the exact kind of role you want: it tells the employer the CV was written for them.
School leaver with 7 GCSEs including Maths (grade 6) and Physics, now studying a Level 2 electrical course at college. Built and wired a working model house for my coursework and help my uncle on weekend kitchen fit-outs. Looking for a Level 3 electrical installation apprenticeship in the Bristol area.
Why it works: Leads with the grades an electrical apprenticeship asks for, then proves hands-on interest.
College leaver with a BTEC Level 3 in Business (Distinction, Merit, Merit) with a two-week placement in the accounts team of a local housing association. Confident with Excel, Outlook and data entry, and used to answering the phone politely in a busy family takeaway. Looking for an entry-level admin or accounts assistant role.
Why it works: Turns a placement and a family business into real evidence of office skills.
History graduate (2:1) with strong research and writing skills, shown in a dissertation built on local archive records and two years writing for the student newspaper. Ran the newspaper’s social media accounts, growing its following through regular posts and short videos. Looking for a graduate marketing or communications assistant role.
Why it works: Links a non-vocational degree to the target job through specific, checkable activities.
For complete one-page CVs built around a statement like these, see our student CV examples or the guide to writing a CV with no work experience.
CV personal statement examples by job
In jobs that need a licence, card or registration, the employer’s first question is whether you have it. Put it in your personal statement so it is seen in the first few seconds, as these examples do.
Caring and patient former hospitality worker who looked after a grandparent with Parkinson’s for two years, helping with meals, mobility and appointments. Completed online courses in moving and handling and dementia awareness, and hold a full UK driving licence. Looking for a care assistant role in home care or a residential home.
Why it works: A personal caring role is real experience. Saying so honestly beats “passionate about care”.
Customer service advisor with three years in a broadband provider’s contact centre, handling billing and fault calls and webchats while meeting quality and call-time targets. Regularly praised in call reviews for calming frustrated customers. Looking for a customer service or complaints handling role, office-based or from home.
Why it works: Names the sector, the channels and the targets: everything a contact centre recruiter scans for.
Teaching assistant with four years in a Key Stage 1 classroom, supporting small reading and phonics groups and children with SEND, including one-to-one support. Level 3 Certificate in Supporting Teaching and Learning and an enhanced DBS check on the Update Service. Looking for a Level 3 TA role in a primary school.
Why it works: The qualification and DBS check sit in the statement because schools check them first.
Chef de partie with five years in fresh-food restaurants, currently running the grill section for up to 150 covers a night. Level 2 Food Hygiene certificate and experience of allergen procedures, stock rotation and training commis chefs. Looking for a sous chef role in a busy independent kitchen.
Why it works: Gives the scale of service and the next step up, so the reader sees the level at once.
Class 1 (C+E) driver with six years’ experience on trunking and multi-drop work, including night shifts and chilled loads. Valid Driver CPC (driver qualification card) and digital tachograph card, with a clean licence. Looking for a permanent day or night trunking role out of the Doncaster area.
Why it works: Licence, CPC and tachograph card answer the three questions every transport manager asks.
SIA-licensed door supervisor with three years’ experience on retail and night-time venue sites, dealing calmly with conflict and keeping clear incident reports. First aid trained. Looking for a static or retail security officer role with regular daytime shifts.
Why it works: The licence comes in the first three words, where an employer will look for it.
Registered adult nurse with current NMC registration and five years on acute medical wards, most recently as a deputy to the ward sister on a 28-bed respiratory ward. Experienced in deteriorating patient care, discharge planning and mentoring student nurses. Looking for a Band 6 or senior staff nurse post.
Why it works: NMC registration comes first, because every nursing employer checks it before anything else.
Only claim what you hold
Examples for career changes, breaks and new starts
These situations are where a personal statement does its most useful work. It lets you explain, in your own words and in a single line, what a recruiter might otherwise guess at.
Store manager with eight years in fashion retail, used to hiring, training and keeping weekly sales on target with a team of 15. Have interviewed and recruited more than 40 staff and enjoy matching people to the right roles. Now looking to move into recruitment as a trainee or associate consultant.
Why it works: Puts the transferable part first (hiring and targets) and names the new job clearly.
Experienced bookkeeper returning to work after three years raising a young family. Previously handled purchase and sales ledgers and VAT returns for small businesses using Sage and Xero, and refreshed my skills this year with an online Xero course. Looking for a part-time bookkeeping or accounts assistant role.
Why it works: One honest phrase covers the break, then the statement moves straight to skills.
Production supervisor with 12 years in food manufacturing, leading shifts of up to 30 operatives and running daily hygiene and safety checks. Made redundant when my site closed in 2026. Looking for a supervisor or team leader role in manufacturing or warehousing.
Why it works: Redundancy is stated as a fact about the site, not the person. Leave it out if you prefer.
Logistics coordinator with seven years at a freight forwarding company in Dubai, arranging sea and air shipments and customs paperwork for retail clients. Fluent in English, Arabic and Hindi. Full right to work in the UK. Looking for a logistics or shipping coordinator role in the Manchester area.
Why it works: Explains the overseas employer in a few words and clears up the right-to-work question.
Operations manager with 15 years in housing and facilities services, currently responsible for repairs and maintenance across around 3,000 homes, a team of 40 and a multi-million-pound budget. Led the move to a new repairs booking system. Looking for a head of operations role in social housing.
Why it works: Senior statements are about scope and change led, not a list of personal qualities.
If you’re coming from abroad, our UK CV vs US resume guide explains the other changes to make, and GOV.UK explains how to prove your right to work.
Build your own in four sentences
If none of the examples fits, build your personal statement for a CV one sentence at a time. Write it last, once the rest of your CV is done, so you can pick your strongest material.
- Who you are. A job title or stage, plus your experience: “Warehouse team leader with four years…”, “Final-year Nursing student…”, “Qualified plumber…”.
- Your proof. The biggest responsibility you hold, or a result you can explain at interview: the size of the team, the number of customers, a system you introduced.
- Your credential. A licence, card, qualification, system or language the advert asks for. Skip this if nothing fits.
- What you want. The type of role, and the setting or area if it helps: “Looking for a night-shift team leader role in the East Midlands.”
Read it aloud. If it would be just as true of a stranger, add a detail only you could write. For where the statement sits on the page and what follows it, see our guide on how to write a UK CV.
Common problems, with before-and-after fixes
Describing your personality instead of your work
Weak
Strong
Promotion and responsibility prove “driven” and “adaptable” without saying them.
Only saying what you want
Weak
Strong
Writing a life story
Weak
Strong
Mixing styles
Pick either “I” or no pronoun, and stick to it. “I am a cleaner. Experienced in offices. I am looking…” reads unevenly. Never switch to “he”, “she” or your own name.
Adjusting your statement for each job
Your personal statement is the easiest part of your CV to tailor, and the first part a recruiter reads. Before each application, open the advert and check three things:
- Does the job title in your statement match, or sit close to, the title in the advert, where that honestly describes you?
- Have you mentioned the one or two essentials the advert stresses most, such as a licence, a system or a type of customer?
- Does the last line name this type of role, rather than the last job you applied for?
Two minutes on these points keeps your statement relevant without rewriting it each time. The same advert is your guide for the rest of the CV too: our list of common CV mistakes and how to fix them covers what else to check.
Personal statement checklist
- Three to five lines, at the top of page one under your contact details
- Opens with what you do or what you are studying, not an adjective
- Includes at least one specific detail: a number, a setting, a system or a result
- Mentions any licence, card or registration the job needs
- Names the type of role you want next
- No clichés such as “team player”, “go-getter” or “thinks outside the box”
- One consistent style, with or without “I”
- British spelling, and checked for typos
Not sure how to sum yourself up in four lines? You can turn your CV into a UK-format CV with UK CV Fix. Upload your current CV or answer a few questions, and we’ll write a personal statement and CV tailored to the job you want, ready to download as Word or PDF.
The best CV personal statement examples share one habit: they are specific enough that they could only be about one person. Borrow the structure from the example closest to you, put in your own facts, and adjust the last line for every job you apply for.
Frequently asked questions
How long should a CV personal statement be?
Three to five lines, or roughly 50 to 100 words. It should fit in the top third of page one without pushing your work experience down.
Should a CV personal statement be written in the first or third person?
Either works in the UK. Most people drop "I" and start with a job title ("Care assistant with..."), which reads crisply. If you prefer "I", keep it consistent and avoid starting every sentence with it. Never write about yourself by name.
Is a CV profile the same as a personal statement?
Yes. "Personal statement", "profile", "personal profile" and "professional summary" all mean the short paragraph at the top of a UK CV. Use whichever heading you like and keep it plain.
Is a CV personal statement the same as a supporting statement or a UCAS personal statement?
No. A supporting statement on an NHS, civil service or council application form is a longer answer showing how you meet each criterion. A UCAS personal statement is for university applications and follows UCAS rules. The CV personal statement is only a few lines.
Can I copy one of these personal statement examples?
Use them as patterns, not scripts. Recruiters see the same online examples again and again, so keep the shape and swap in your own job title, experience, credentials and target role.
