Jobs Fair gets 600 apprentices signed up

A Jobs, Apprenticeships and Careers Fair organised by the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership was a spectacular success, resulting in 600 new apprentices being signed up by employers across the area.

CWLEP organised the event for students in years 10-13 for the second successive year and over 2,500 students, parents and carers attended the gathering at the Ricoh Arena.

Warwickshire County Council was among 65 exhibitors representing a broad range of sectors included engineering, construction, health and social care, catering, apprenticeships and higher and further education.

The county council is passionate about helping young people into work and its Apprenticeship Hub team offers free and impartial business advice to small and medium size businesses to support them in recruiting apprentices.

Apprenticeship Hub team members were at the Jobs, Apprenticeships and Careers Fair which was attended by staff and students from 30 Coventry and Warwickshire schools, including one which brought along their entire Year 10 and 11 students, totalling 450 pupils.

CWLEP chairman Jonathan Browning was delighted by the high numbers of students and employers at the event which coincided with national Work Experience Week.

He said: “The employers, training providers, colleges of further education and universities who attended made a difference to young peoples’ lives by providing vital information and advice about their future careers.

“To see their energy and enthusiasm was fantastic and this kind of event is definitely a focus for the CWLEP in terms of building skills and helping the economy in this area.”

Rachael Stewart, skills executive at the CWLEP, said this was the second successive year the event had been held and, once again, it had been an outstanding success.

“The Fair was even bigger and better than last year and it was really great to see so many young people and their parents and carers receiving advice in a wide range of sectors,” she said.

“We had 600 young people sign up to apprenticeships which is fantastic for their future and for employers who are training the next generation of their workforce.

“We also had even more employers, education and training organisations with stands which underlines the value of this event."

For more information about Warwickshire County Council's Apprenticeship Hub, visit www.warwickshire.gov.uk/getanapprentice