Last week over 40 employers assembled at West Thames College in Isleworth for the Aspire Skills Show Experience, supported by Mary Macleod MP, Heathrow, Jobcentre Plus and Premier Inn.
Mary Macleod, MP for Chiswick, Brentford, Isleworth, Osterley and Hounslow said:
“The Aspire event was really exciting and I was proud to be working with West Thames College, Heathrow and Jobcentre Plus to deliver more jobs for local people. Although unemployment has fallen significantly since 2010, around 1,800 local people are still on Jobseeker’s Allowance. My aim is to get these people earning or learning – and what better way to do that than at this event.”
Well over 2,000 visitors attended the event, and with more on offer than ever before, the atmosphere on the day was hugely positive. One local resident, Stella, commented:
“I wish there was more of these kind of events and it was very successful, although I feel that maybe over 3 days would have been better. One day just wasn’t enough to visit all the stalls and get all the information I wanted to!”
This year’s event was ‘the skills show with a difference’, and was one of the biggest careers events West London has seen. One big difference was the presence of ‘Have a Go’ sessions - activity-based career building exercises such as forklift truck driving, bike building and circuit making. Along with one-to-one advice delivered by experts from Barclays and the National Careers Service, attendees were given a real experience on the day.
Team leader Mark Flatt was one of the Barclays volunteers who took part in the day. He said:
“It was great to be involved in this excellent, well run event. We met many enthusiastic people determined to take a step on the employment ladder and it was a pleasure to be able to use our own skills and experience to guide them.”
In the main hall, employers such as GSK, Virgin Media, St George, Heathrow and the British Army, were among many companies taking CVs and talking to people about working for their organisations. As well as this, people were walking out of the college with a job offer from Tesco, Premier Inn, Pet Plan or Allianz. Marjorie Semple, West Thames College Principal said:
“For me, the highlight of Aspire was when a young man came up to me to tell me he had just been offered his first ever job – on Reception with Premier Inn. He wanted to thank the college for hosting the event which helped him to achieve this. That's what this event was all about.”