Your chance to meet employers who recruit young people

On behalf of Swindon Borough Council, Education Business Partnership (EBP), will be delivering the JobFest 2018, at STEAM on 6th March 2018.

Now in its 4th year, JobFest 2018 will bring together Swindon employers who are offering apprenticeships and employment opportunities to 16-24 year olds in the local area. JobFest has evolved year on year and has fast become known an important platform for Swindon employers to reach out to local young people and meet their future workforce. In 2017, 95% of young people attending said they would recommend this event to a friend.

This Education Business Partnership event, assisted by Business West, will be promoting, informing and engaging young people about the career options available to them in the Swindon area. JobFest 2018 is on target to involve over 50 businesses from a wide range of industries from Engineering to Social Care, plus national and local apprenticeship training providers promoting a variety of opportunities in and around Swindon.

Cllr Oliver Donachie, Swindon Borough Council Cabinet Member for Economy and Skills, said: “The Council has made it a priority to offer education opportunities that lead to the right skills and right jobs in the right places. To help young people gain an understanding on what is on offer in Swindon the council is bringing businesses and training providers together at JobFest for a fourth time. There has been some marked success in previous years and last year 30 candidates were identified for posts.

“Swindon is full of opportunity as business stock has grown by 34% over the past five years, that’s double the growth of the South West and 9% higher than the rest of the UK. All these businesses need good quality candidates so I would encourage all who attend JobFest to make the most of the event and take a look at how the young people of Swindon can help us build an even brighter future.”

Jane Grunseid, JobFest Manager at EBP said ”The response to JobFest 2018 is incredibly positive from Swindon’s Business community wanting to get involved and we have well over over 400 Swindon Secondary School year 11, 12 and 13 students, who will be considering apprenticeships for this summer, signed up to attend already after a week of promotion! This is a great opportunity for local employers to promote themselves to young people who are currently unemployed or will be leaving education, on a face-to-face basis. JobFest will help provide the tools to help them decide what employment route to take.” 

JobFest will be held during the Government’s 11th National Apprenticeship Week initiative (NAW 2018) that runs from 5th- 9th March 2018. During the week employers and apprentices from across England will come together to celebrate the success of apprenticeships whilst encouraging even more people to choose apprenticeships as a pathway to a great career.

Swindon will be joining this government initiative by funding JobFest.