NEARLY 400 jobseekers flocked to the third Halesowen and Rowley Regis Jobs and Skills Fair.

The event at the Zion Christian Centre, Halesowen, attracted 25 organisations showcasing jobs, apprenticeships and training opportunities, ranging from advanced engineering and social care to hospitality and customer service.

National companies like Hyatt Regency Hotels, McDonalds and National Express were joined by major local firms, including Sandvik, Somers Forge and Cradley Heath classic car insurers Footman James.

The fair, organised by Halesowen and Rowley Regis MP James Morris, also featured careers advice from the Black Country Skills Factory and Connexions, as well as organisations offering basic skills training and entry-level qualifications to help people into work.

Mr Morris said: “Even though local unemployment continues to fall, we still need to do everything possible to help people in Halesowen and Rowley Regis to find work and to gain the skills and qualifications they need to build careers.

“These jobs fairs are a useful way of bringing local people who are looking for work or training face-to-face with businesses and training providers who have opportunities on offer.

“I spoke to all of the companies and know how impressed they were with the quality of the people at the jobs and skills fair, and that many are already planning to interview jobseekers they met at the event.”

Footman James is looking forward to take people on from the fair when they begin their recruitment drive this winter.

Director David Bond, said: "As a leading local employer we take great pride in recruiting the very best employees. We were absolutely delighted with the staff we recruited after last year's jobs fair.

"We enjoyed meeting people with a variety of skills at our stand, and look forward to meeting with them again during our recruitment process."

Sandvik’s corporate communications manager Kim Olander, added: “We used the jobs and skills fair to talk to local prospective engineers about opportunities at Sandvik Coromant and across the Black Country engineering industry.

"High-value manufacturing is vital to the local economy and we need to make sure that the best school and college leavers look at building their careers in engineering."