 Bradley joined the London, Midland and Scottish Railway as a junior clerk in the Goods Depot at Kettering in 1941.He became a railway clerk at Oundle and was national treasurer of the clerks' union, the Transport Salaried Staffs' Association from 1961, its president from 1964 to 1977, and was its acting General Secretary for four months in 1977 after the retirement of the previous General Secretary (David MacKenzie) on health grounds.He served as a councillor on Northamptonshire County Council from 1952 and as an alderman from 1961.