Some interesting replies so far, keep them coming
NATS offers a much better chance of avoiding London as 90% of the trainees will end up doing Area control instead
I didn't realise it was as high as 90% - are you counting the London approach controllers which are also based on Swanwick in that figure?
NATS can send you anywhere however you also have the ability to move within the company and if you seek a more managerial position then there are very good & numerous prospects available.
People seem to have different opinions on this. Some say it's possible to move after a few years in your initial posting as a tower controller but others say it's very unlikely. Alos, could you give any examples of these "managerial positions"? I guess they are mostly based at HQ and would require a fair amount of experience?