Hundreds of people expected to attend jobs fair in Peterborough
More than 500 job seekers attended previous event
A major jobs fair is to be staged in Peterborough in a bid to fill scores of vacancies across the region.
The event is being organised by staff at Peterborough Jobcentre and will take place in the summer.
Figures show there are currently 641 vacancies at firms across Peterborough.
It follows the huge success of a similar event in Peterborough just weeks ago and which was attended by about 540 people.
Stephen Lankester from East Anglia Jobcentre Plus said: “The new jobs fair will be held on May 21 in Peterborough.
"It will feature employers from all sectors but we are still sorting out the details of the event.”
He said the event would build on the success of the jobs fair earlier this month which was held at Peterborough Jobscentre in Bridge Street.
He said: “We had 540 people through the door and there were 16 employers and partners that also attended.
"We are still awaiting outcomes as interviews and contacts are made.
"However, we were aware of more than 10 job interviews that were offered on the day with most companies saying they had around 30 or more people to contact for further discussions and potential interviews.
He added: “So far we are aware of six actual job starts.”
According to new figures from the Department of Work and Pensions there were 8,165 Universal Credit claimants in Peterborough last month, up from 7,350 in the previous month – an 11 percent rate of increase.
However there was a larger rate of increase in claimants aged 18-24-years-old and the over-50s.
There were 1,415 claimants aged 18 to 24 last month – up 12 percent on the previous month. Over the same period the number of people aged 50 plus claiming Universal Credit rose to 1,640 from 1,440 – a 14 per cent increase.
Across the East of England there are currently 146,000 people registered as unemployed, which is up 19,000 on the year.
The unemployment rate is 4.3 percent, which is 0.4 percentage points up on the year and 305,000 people are in non-working households.