IT contractors and freelancers can expect to see a "steady but not spectacular" market for jobs in 2011, according to an IT recruitment company.

Outsource UK polled a number of experts in the sector to fund that there will be a gradual increase in the number of available posts for IT contractors, partly buoyed up by a continuation in the positive trend for private sector recruitment.

"We are seeing significant and continued demand for business-technical skills in the financial services, retail and distribution sectors," commented Paul Jameson, managing director for Outsource UK.

IT contractors can look forward to a slow but steady stream of work throughout the first quarter of 2011 at least, he went on to say.

The comments come after a survey by the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development claimed that job satisfaction among professional people in the UK has risen in the last year, despite general falls in the standard of living.