Why Castlemead?
As one of the few remaining truly independent broker businesses, we’ve a well-earned reputation among our UK and European clients for solving the thorniest of insurance challenges. Challenges best solved through teamwork and investment in our people’s ongoing personal and professional development.
Values we work by
Our values act as a North Star for how we do business, they shape everything decision-making to relationship building to measuring success. There’s more about our values here, but here’s the short version:
Our clients’ problems are our problems: we always look for ways to make life easier and simpler for our clients, provide more value, and deliver better results.
Commercial know-how: we strive to understand how businesses work and what makes them tick. Then we apply this know-how for our clients’ benefit and ours.
We’re supportive: we aim to lift everyone up – insurers, suppliers, clients, colleagues – to be the best they can be and to achieve the best possible results.
We’re tenacious: we want the best for clients and move heaven and earth to get the job done. That means no I’s undotted or T’s uncrossed until everyone’s happy.
We’re honest: we’re truthful, yet respectful, no matter how people behave. We keep our promises and present risks fairly – even if it makes life harder for us.
We make a real effort to invest in our people’s personal and professional development. To show what’s possible, we’ve shone a spotlight on three individuals to hear in their own words how their careers have developed at Castlemead.
The biggest misconception about our industry is that insurance is boring. Far from it. You get to learn so much. Not just about insurance but about how businesses work in different sectors, what their biggest exposures are, and what it means when it goes wrong.
The best thing about my job is knowing my clients are protected if the worst happens. That comes from giving high-quality advice as to what best suits their business – everything from legal requirements to the nice-to-have policies – and talking it through with them. The personal touch is important, too, as is always being there on the phone or in-person when they need you most. This is the ‘Castlemead way’ and something that often gets forgotten about when you work for a larger broker.
If someone asks me why they should join the insurance industry, I tell them they’ll learn something new every day. They’ll have a real impact on people’s businesses and lives. And that being there when clients need you most is extremely rewarding.
If someone asks me why they should join Castlemead specifically, I tell them no other broker I know offers the same level of career support and training. I’m a great example of that support and training in practice. Having joined as an Account Handler, I’m now part of the Senior Leadership Team helping to take the business forward.
I started at Castlemead in 2014 as an Account Handler, with aspirations to become an Account Executive. And after three years, I had the opportunity to accompany our Managing Director, Richard, on a few client visits over the course of a year or so. I learnt so much. This led to me being given my own book of business to look after.
Since then I’ve grown my book from around £60k to £370k and now look after a significant portion of our revenue. I’ve also been encouraged to study since joining Castlemead and in 2023 achieved my ACII qualification from the Chartered Insurance Institute.
My goal for the future is to become a Director at Castlemead and, of course, continue to grow the level of business I look after.
Building a solid base of knowledge is paramount to succeeding in the insurance industry. And Castlemead not only provides a comprehensive training package, but also funding for as much CII study as you can handle. And I strongly recommend any new joiners to take advantage of this.
After my business degrees and a position in HR, I joined Castlemead in April 2023 as a Graduate Account Manager. I have friends and family working in the insurance industry and they recommended it as a career. I chose Castlemead as it was clear the company had a well-defined job progression and career development path, as well as a tight-knit team culture.
My role sees me arranging bespoke insurance for a variety of complex policies, and working closely alongside a supportive and friendly team of colleagues. People often think insurance is dull and repetitive but, in my experience, it’s quite the opposite. In fact, dealing both with commercial and private clients, I’m forever learning new things.
As someone who recently joined the insurance industry, I’d highly recommend it as a career. And with regards to a career with Castlemead specifically, you have a really supportive team, but also you get to work alongside highly experienced and expert ACII Directors who make every effort to help and guide you on your own career journey.
We are always keen* to hear from customer-focused insurance professionals who love the work they do and the industry they’re in. And even if none of our vacancies suit you right now, we’d still like to hear from you.
*We’re not keen on accepting unsolicited CVs or cover letters from recruitment agencies.
If there are no vacancies listed, please send us an email by filling out our form below.
Further information:
Bristol office:
Castlemead House
St John's Road
Bristol BS3 1AL
Exeter office:
Leeward House
Fitzroy Road
Exeter Business Park
Exeter EX1 3LJ
