In the UK these days, especially within the box-ticking culture of the Private Sector, it also helps if you come from certain "groups", if you see what I'm saying. Factors such as these are more obvious in certain parts of the country, and especially so in the large cities, but in general it's the case wherever you go.
Folk that can get a tick in
all the boxes go straight to the top of list, regardless of real capability.
And (of course) if you're sixty years old or beyond ... forget it!
Regarding NHS biomed shops in particular (and as I have mentioned before):- some are effectively closed shops. So yes, in those especially, not only is it a question of "who you know", it's also a case of needing to be "one of *us"!
*
Or, more accurately, "one of them"!
