Building Careers Close to Home with my Job Fair

It was fantastic to host another Newbury Job Fair, working in partnership with Newbury Job Centre and West Berkshire Council to connect jobseekers with local employers.

The event brought together a wide range of businesses and organisations, from retail and rail to healthcare, education, and hospitality, all committed to supporting local employment and skills.

I had the opportunity to speak with several employers and jobseekers throughout the day. It was brilliant to see so many people making connections and exploring new opportunities right here in Newbury and West Berkshire. Below are some highlights from a few of the employers who took part.

• Lidl shared their approach to supporting staff development and progression, helping employees build careers in retail.

• Thames Water spoke about their outreach work, especially with community groups and individuals facing barriers to employment, including ex-offenders. They have around 900 open vacancies across the region, with strong support programmes in place.

• Poseidon Care highlighted the challenges and importance of the adult social care sector. Their commitment to in-house training, apprenticeships, and fair pay stood out, a great example of how investment in people benefits everyone.

• Get Active are doing fantastic work running after-school and wraparound clubs, offering youth employment and apprenticeships while helping families balance work and childcare.

• Newbury College showcased their range of courses to help people upskill, particularly in engineering and construction.

• GWR shared their apprenticeship and lifelong learning programmes, showing how transport careers can be accessible to people of all ages.

• Priors Court discussed their recruitment drive for specialist roles, highlighting the importance of supporting those with additional needs.

• Harrods’ distribution centre shared news of seasonal vacancies, a great boost for those looking for flexible work in the lead-up to Christmas.

  
  

Across all sectors, one message came through clearly: local employers are eager to recruit, train, and retain talented people, and they’re proud to be part of our community.

Events like this are a great reminder of what we can achieve when we bring people together, connecting skills, ambition, and opportunity.

My thanks go to all the employers who took part, and to everyone who came along. If you missed this one, we’ll be holding more in the future.