More than fifty local people have been given a helping hand into training and employment following the annual Darlington Jobs and Careers Fair which took place in the Dolphin Centre earlier this month.
The event saw more than 600 people attend to find out more about employment, training and education opportunities in Darlington and across the Tees Valley. A record number of organisations were involved and feedback from these has been hugely positive.
Organisations that took part included: Darlington Association on Disability, Darlington College, Firstpoint Homecare, Servoca, EE, Army Careers, YEI – Youth Employment Initiative, Ascot Care, National Careers Service, Blossom Home Care, Morrison Trust, Rockliffe Hall Hotel, Durham Constabulary, Aldi, Enterprise Made Simple, Routes to Work, Learning & Skills Darlington, Citizens Advice Darlington, VUE Cinema, Lets Go Tees Valley and Jobcentre Plus.
The event formed part of Darlington Business Week which saw 26 events spread across the week, aimed at supporting businesses of all sizes and stages. Around 500 local business people took advantage of the free workshops and networking events.
The wide range of topics covered included digital marketing, mental health and wellbeing, business start-up, growth and funding opportunities options, building tours, winning contracts and much more. Tees Valley Mayor Ben Houchen helped to launch Business Week 2019, event which ended on a futuristic note as Futurist Dr Ian Pearson gave his thoughts on future of business and the way we work.
Many of the businesses and partners have already committed to be involved in next year’s event.
Councillor Alan Marshall, Darlington Borough Council’s cabinet member for Economy and Regeneration, said:
“This is brilliant news for local job seekers and I wish them luck in their new roles. The aim of Business Week was to showcase the vast array of help, support and talent we have in Darlington and provide local businesses with the opportunity to learn new skills, gather information, focus on potential new areas of growth, make new contacts and build on relationships.
“We want to help businesses to start, succeed and grow. I am delighted this year’s events have been a success, and I’m already looking forward to Business Week 2020.”
Help and support for local businesses, and for people who are interested in starting a business, is available from the Council’s Economy team. People can contact business.support@darlington.gov.uk for details.