Category Archives: Jobs

Job Opportunities, Jobs, News, North of England

£1.2M to support youth employment in Durham

Youth Futures Foundation has announced a new partnership with Durham County Council to boost youth employment. Set to support over 200 young people over two years, Youth Futures has awarded a £1.2m grant to Durham County Council, and its programme partner DurhamWorks.

This financial boost comes at a vital time as the cost of living crisis takes hold and one in 10 young people in the UK are out of employment (NEET), education or work. According to research by PwC and Youth Futures, UK GDP could benefit by £38billion by lowering levels of young workers classed as NEETs to German levels.

This cash injection will fund the DurhamWorks Futures programme that will support 16-24-year-olds furthest from the labour market. Young people will benefit from support to gain locally relevant skills and links to employers to secure good jobs. The programme will provide one-to-one support to develop motivation, confidence and work-readiness – alongside creating a range of employment opportunities to help young people overcome barriers to move into the world of work.

Youth Futures funding (from dormant assets) will also support the evaluation, undertaken by King’s College London, of this place-based model to tackling youth unemployment. The findings will be shared across the youth sector and with national and local policymakers to help inform and scale up effective practice and policy. This builds on Youth Futures’ recently announced £16m Connected Futures Fund, aimed at reducing the fragmentation of youth employment and skills delivery in seven places in England with high levels of youth unemployment.

The government launched a consultation on the future use of dormant assets in England, the source of Youth Futures’ funding, this month. The expanded scheme could release more than £738m additional funds. Youth Futures hopes to secure further funding to support more marginalised young people into good jobs through place-based initiatives, by working with employers, focusing on prevention and continuing to scale up effective practice by building its evidence base of what works.

Cllr Ted Henderson, Durham County Council’s Cabinet member for children and young people’s services, said:

“It is fantastic that this funding has been secured to assist those young people in our county who are currently out of work and in need of support.

“We know how important it is that this type of help is offered so that the younger generation of job seekers can achieve their full potential. Our hope is that this programme provides a significant boost to the employment prospects of those it will work with.”

Matthew Poole, Director of Grants and Investment at Youth Futures Foundation, said:

“Young people tell us they want joined-up, consistent support that helps them gain control of their lives and get a good job. That’s why we are investing £1.2m in DurhamWorks Futures to test the most effective approaches to helping young people who face multiple challenges to secure employment.

“We will use evidence from DurhamWorks to inform youth employment policy at a national and local level. This demonstrates the vital importance of using dormant assets funding to tackle youth unemployment, through funding and learning from place-based initiatives like this in Durham.”

Jessica says DurhamWorks Futures has:

“Supported with my CV and built my self-esteem and confidence to get out and look for employment, as I don’t want education anymore. I would like something in care work.”

The project launches just months after ‘Youth Under Lockdown’ was published, a report undertaken by the Universities of Durham and Huddersfield, in partnership with Youth Futures. The report, which presented young peoples’ varied experiences of the Covid-19 lockdown, identified f the future implications of the pandemic and pressures to come for young people, particularly in respect of the labour market.

To find out more information about Youth Futures Foundation, visit: youthfuturesfoundation.org.

Jobs, News, Recruitment, Recruitment News

One nurse relocates to Kent and climbs the career ladder

As Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust is hosting a recruitment event to attract nurses on Saturday 30th July, nurse Louise Robertson – Clinical Skills Facilitator, Trauma & Orthopaedics at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust shares how moving to Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells helped her climb the career ladder:

Louise always wanted to be a nurse and when she was 18, she did an Enrolled Nurse course at Worthing Hospital, qualifying in 1986.  

Louise says, “From about the age of three I started telling everyone that I was going to be a nurse. I never really wanted to be anything else, so I started my training in Worthing, East Sussex although I’m originally from Surrey.” 

Louise stayed at Worthing for six months, before the Nuffield in Tunbridge Wells. She later did a conversion course from 1993-94 to become a registered nurse.  

In 1997 she had her daughter. She carried on nursing at the Nuffield until 2000, and then joined the Bank at Pembury Hospital, now part of Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (MTW). She later decided to progress her career in hospice care.  

Louise explains, “I had always had an interest in palliative care so when my daughter was a little bit older, I took on a nursing role at the Hospice in the Weald. I also started outreach training at West Kent College, whilst working at the hospice, and found I liked sharing knowledge and teaching other people.” 

During her time at the hospice, it made her think about her own mortality and, when she inherited some money she decided to follow another passion of hers and enrolled into Horticultural College. 

Louise said, “Gardening is something I really enjoyed, so I combined working at the hospice with doing a course at college. During this time, I did a few gardens, but in 2007 gardening really took off and I decided to do it full time and left the hospice.” 

But for Louise nursing was always part of her and even with her gardening clients, many of whom were quite elderly, she would take on a caring role with them.  She says, “Nursing is in my blood and is something that never leaves you. Someone once said that if you opened me up, I would have nurse written through me like a stick of rock.” 

Louise carried on gardening until 2017 but then decided she needed more stability and went back to nursing. As she had let her NMC registration lapse she returned to MTW as a clinical support worker (CSW) in August 2017. 

In September she enrolled in a three-month return to practice course at Canterbury University. Louise says, “I was happy to see how things went in the CSW role. I wanted to regain my confidence as I had not been nursing for a while, but my manager encouraged me to do the return to practice so I just decided to go for it.” 

MTW paid for the course, but didn’t pay whilst she completed her clinical practice, so she had to continue working as a CSW. The course takes three months and because of the length of time, Louise had been away from nursing she had to do 100 hours of clinical practice over the three months. Louise said it was really hard work as she had to work at the same time to support herself but was worth it. She passed and joined the trauma and orthopaedics ward at Tunbridge Wells Hospital as a Band 5 nurse in 2018.  

In 2020 she was promoted to a Band 6 Junior Sister, and in January 2022 made a Band 6 Clinical Skills Facilitator. Louise was a bit hesitant at first about going for the Junior Sister role, so she initially took this on as a secondment. 

Louise explains, “I was apprehensive because I am a very hands-on nurse and wasn’t sure if the role would be right for me.  I believed that the higher you go the less the role is about nursing and caring for patients and more about management. But the Trust supported me and helped me make the decision, so I agreed to do it as a secondment before I took on the role permanently.  

“I found I really enjoyed it. I still spent a lot of time doing clinical work, but I was also mentoring students and new nurses on the ward. I had enjoyed teaching people when I worked in the hospice and one of the things, I’m keen to do is pass on the knowledge that I’ve gained over the years.  

“A lot of this is about basic care such as mouth care, which sometimes gets missed. Cleaning a patient’s teeth, if they can’t do it and they’ve been in hospital for a few days, can make them feel so much better. It’s these small things that are often overlooked which make a big difference in patient care.” 

As well as the clinical side of her role, Louise is now involved with coming up with new initiatives and working alongside new nurses who join the Trust. Her role is about ensuring safe practice across the team and providing good learning and development, so nurses can reach their full potential.  

She says, “I work with new nurses, many who have joined from overseas and have taken a big step to move countries. I help to reassure and support them, so they can gain confidence in their skills and adapt to our way of working.” 

Louise highly recommends working at MTW as they have supported her throughout her career to reach her potential. Now in her 50’s she is pleased to be doing a role she didn’t even know existed a few years ago and sharing her skills and knowledge. 

Louise adds, “The Trust has always encouraged me to progress, even when I may not have felt ready at the time. My passion for nursing never left me; it is part of who I am, and I’m delighted I made the decision to return to practice. The role has changed a lot since I started, and nurses today take on a lot more responsibility. 

“In fact, in many ways, nurses are like the junior doctors of previous generations and the role has expanded, with nurses needing many more skills, but it’s also the basics that are important.  My role enables me to still have patient contact and provide the outstanding care the Trust is renowned for, but at the same time pass on what I’ve learnt over the years to the next generation of nurses.”  

—

About the Open Day

Date: Saturday, 30th July 2022

Time: Arrival at 9.00

Location: Discharge Lounge Tunbridge Wells Hospital, Pembury, Tunbridge Wells, Kent, TN2 4QJ

We are delighted to share that we will be hosting a Nursing and Midwifery Open Day on Saturday, 30th July 2022!

On the day, you will hear about the comprehensive induction programme, continuous professional development and career progression opportunities at Maidstone and Tunbridge NHS Trust. You will have the opportunity to speak with senior nurses and midwives and ask any questions you may have.

Whether you are about to qualify, newly qualified or an experienced Staff Nurse / Midwife, we want to hear from you! We are looking for someone who is patient-focused, positive, enthusiastic, flexible and forward thinking, in order to deliver high quality care to our patients and mums-to-be.

There will also be the opportunity to be interviewed on the day, so you could go home with a job offer!

Interested? Don’t delay – Please apply to register your attendance

Closing Date: 29th July 2022

 

Healthcare, Job Opportunities, Jobs, Nursing

Become a healthcare support worker at one of the top performing trusts in the country- recruitment day at Tunbridge Wells Hospital on 23 July 2022

Healthcare support workers play a vital role in helping us deliver the very best care to our patients. If you’re Interested in this role and would like to work at one of the top performing trusts in the country and we’d love to meet you at our recruitment event at Tunbridge Wells Hospital on Saturday 23 July from 9am to 3pm.

The event is open to anyone who is interested in a career in healthcare and wants to become a healthcare support worker and join our friendly nursing teams.

Healthcare support workers help patients in a variety of ways including support with social and physical activities, personal care, mealtimes and booking appointments, as well as taking patient observations, including their temperature and pulse[i].

Joining the Trust as a healthcare support worker is an opportunity for people to learn and develop their nursing skills, in a fast-paced, very busy hospital. No qualifications or experience are necessary as full training is provided.

 

Hannah Tompsett, Deputy Chief Nurse at MTW said: “The recruitment day is a chance for people to meet our staff and find out what the role entails and what it’s like to work at the Trust. They could also walk away with a job offer on the day.

“I joined MTW earlier this year and it’s a great place to work. The Trust offers a supportive environment where people are really given the chance to develop and progress their career. It supports flexible working patterns, and there are many staff benefits to ensure an excellent work-life balance.

“We’re looking for people who want to kick start their healthcare career, return to work after a break or change careers, and we encourage people to come along and talk to our experienced nursing team about the opportunities we have.”

 

The recruitment day takes place in the reception area at Tunbridge Wells Hospital, Tonbridge Road, Tunbridge Wells, TN2 4QJ on 23 July. On the day there will be a presentation about the role and the Trust, a tour of the hospital and the possibility of being interviewed for a specific role. For more information, click here.

Interested? MTW is a large acute hospital trust in Kent. The Trust provides a full range of general services and some areas of complex care to around 760,000 people in the south part of West Kent and the north part of East Sussex.

MTW recently launched a major recruitment drive focused on clinical roles. This comes at an exciting time as the Trust has invested in new facilities, service developments, training centres and digital transformations. To find out more about career opportunities, go to: Home – Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (mtwcareers.com)

 

 

[i] https://www.england.nhs.uk/nursingmidwifery/healthcare-support-worker-programme/#:~:text=Healthcare%20support%20workers%20play%20a,meal%20times%2C%20booking%20appointments%20etc.

Jobs, Midlands, News

Revealed: The West Midlands has the Highest Percentage of Filled Kickstart Roles

Since the Kickstart Scheme ended in March 2022, SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk, therefore, wanted to reflect on the scheme and analyse how well it went from a regional, national, sector-specific and age-related perspective.

SmallBusinessPrices.co.uk investigated the percentage of available Kickstart job roles that have been filled by UK region: 

 

  • Great Britain (Total): 68.00%
  • England: 67.45%
  • East Midlands: 72.86%
  • East of England: 64.44
  • London: 62.94%
  • North East: 71.82%
  • North West: 67.67%
  • South East: 65.77%
  • South West: 69.29%
  • West Midlands: 73.33%
  • Yorkshire and The Humber: 70.53%
  • Scotland: 73.68%
  • Wales: 65.00%

 

They also looked at the most popular sectors regarding the Kickstart Scheme. The sectors allocated the most jobs were Administration at 57,350, followed by Retail and Sales at 34,970.

The full list of sectors can be found in the table below: 

Finally, they explored the most popular ages in percentage to take part in the Kickstart Scheme, which were 22 and 23 at 19%. The least common ages to take part in the Kickstart Scheme were under 18 and 25, both at less than 1%.

Healthcare, Healthcare Careers, Job Opportunities, Jobs, News, Pay & Reward, Pay and Reward

Kick start a career in the NHS by joining as a Clinical Support Worker – Open day at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust on 11th June 2022

Clinical support workers assist healthcare professionals in the delivery of patient care, taking on tasks such as welcoming and preparing patients, explaining treatments and updating patient records[i]. The role is a great opportunity for anyone interested in working for the NHS to get their first step on the ladder.

Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (MTW) is currently on a recruitment drive for clinical support workers and is hosting an open day on 11th June 2022 for people to find out more about what the role entails and what it’s like to work at the Trust.

People don’t need previous healthcare experience and joining as a clinical support worker could kick off a lifelong career in the NHS. It’s an opportunity to learn and develop acute care nursing skills, in a fast-paced, high patient turnover environment.

The Trust offers a supportive environment where staff members are given the chance to develop and progress their careers. New starters will attend the Trust’s Clinical Induction Programme which lasts for two weeks and involves travelling to both of the Trusts sites in Maidstone and Tunbridge, before starting work on the wards.

The open day takes place at the Reception Area, Main Entrance Tunbridge Wells Hospital, Tonbridge Road Royal Tunbridge Wells, TN2 4QJ on 11th June from 9am until 3pm. On the day there will be a presentation about the role and Trust, a tour of the hospital and the possibility of being interviewed for a specific role.

For more information on the recruitment event, job descriptions and main responsibilities– please click here – http://jobs.mtw.nhs.uk/job/UK/Kent/Maidstone_Tunbridge_Wells/Maidstone_Tunbridge_Wells_NHS_Trust/Tunbridge_Wells_Maidstone/Tunbridge_Wells_Maidstone-v4252681?_ts=1

MTW is a large acute hospital trust in Kent. The trust provides a full range of general services and some areas of complex care to around 760,000 people in the south part of West Kent and the north part of East Sussex.

MTW recently launched a major recruitment drive focused on clinical roles. This comes at an exciting time as the trust has invested in new facilities, service developments, training centres and digital transformations. To find out more about career opportunities, go to: Home – Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (mtwcareers.com)

—

[i] https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/explore-roles/wider-healthcare-team/roles-wider-healthcare-team/clinical-support-staff#:~:text=Healthcare%20support%20wokers,dietetic%20assistant

[ii] https://www.mtw.nhs.uk/2021/10/mtw-hits-cancer-target-2-years-in-a-row-to-place-in-top-three-performing-uk-trusts/

[iii] https://www.england.nhs.uk/nhs-parliamentary-awards/

Health, Job Opportunities, Jobs, News

Calling Allied Health Professionals to Open Day at Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust – Saturday 21st May 2022 – 10am to 12 noon

Allied Health Professionals (AHPs) are vital to the NHS in delivering their long term plan to improve the care for patients over the next 10 years[i].

There are approximately 152,000 AHPs working across all health and social care settings including hospitals[ii]. One of the top performing hospital trusts in England, Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (MTW), is now recruiting people for various AHP roles – offering the chance for career advancement in a friendly and supportive trust which is focused on learning and professional development.

MTW is hosting a recruitment open day at Maidstone Academic Centre, Maidstone Hospital on Saturday 21st May for those about to qualify, newly qualified or experienced health professionals and are looking to recruit for several key roles including:

  • Dietitian
  • Occupational Therapist
  • Operating Department Practitioner
  • Orthoptist
  • Physiotherapist
  • Radiographer (diagnostic or therapeutic)
  • Speech and Language Therapist

On the day people can find out more about the roles and what it’s like to work at MTW, including the induction programme and training and development opportunities. They will also be able to speak with senior AHPs working in the Trust and ask any questions.

To attend, people must register by 13th May 2022. For more information and to view all the job descriptions for the available roles visit https://www.mtwcareers.com/news/allied-health-professionals-recruitment-event-saturday-21st-may-2022/.

—

MTW is a large acute hospital trust in Kent. The trust provides a full range of general services and some areas of complex care to around 500,000 people in the south part of West Kent and the north part of East Sussex.

MTW recently launched a major recruitment drive focused on clinical roles. This comes at an exciting time as the trust has invested in new facilities, service developments, training centres and digital transformations. To find out more about career opportunities, go to: Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust (mtwcareers.com)

[i] https://www.longtermplan.nhs.uk/blog/building-our-workforce-of-the-future/#:~:text=The%20NHS%20Long%20Term%20Plan%20will%20provide%20a%20range%20of,level%207%20Advanced%20practitioner%20apprenticeship.

[ii] http://www.ahpf.org.uk/

Jobs, Lifestyle & Travel, News, Travel

Surge in holiday bookings prompts summer recruitment drive for home & pet sitters

The UK’s biggest travel agent, TUI has reported that summer holiday bookings in the UK are driving a summer holiday boom, with bookings up by a fifth on pre-pandemic levels[i].

The Queen’s Jubilee is further fuelling holiday demand as the additional bank holiday in June means people could get nine days off work in a row, by only booking three (30th May, 31st and 1st June)[ii].

To meet increased demand for their services, Homesitters Ltd, a national pet and homesitting business is on an urgent recruitment drive and is seeking new employees to look homes and pets throughout the UK.

Ben Irvine, Director of Operations at Homesitters says,

“The big rise in pet ownership during the pandemic, particularly dogs and cats, is adding to this demand. We are seeking new homesitters to join our team and get them up and running as soon as possible. The role is ideal for active retirees in their 50s, 60s and 70s, who want a flexible part time role.

“The role involves spending time with pets, exploring new parts of the UK and not having to pay for accommodation. People can also supplement their pension income as homesitters are paid a modest remuneration which includes a food allowance and travel mileage costs.”

One retired couple who have been home sitting for a few years are Sue and Gordon Heels, from Bedfordshire. After retiring they decided home sitting would be an ideal flexible form of employment with responsibility and purpose.

They love spending time with dogs and dog walking and the role gives them a chance to get out into the countryside and keep fit, whatever the weather.

They get a complete change of scene and a break from their normal routine. Living on a main road, they especially appreciate staying in homes in the countryside. One of their regular clients has a home surrounded by woodland and a range of pets to look after including goats, chickens, guinea fowl and a cockerel.

They love walking through the beautiful woodland, listening to birdsong and star gazing at night. They find it a real contrast to their normal life and, an unexpected benefit of homesitting is spending quality time together.

Sue explains,

“We love home and pet sitting because we do it together. At home we tend to do our own thing, but on assignments we work as a team and love taking the dogs for walks together.

We go to church on Sundays. When we are on home and pet sitting weekends, we find a local church to attend. We’ve made new friends across the country and were even invited for a dinner at one church.”

 

The couple have a regular client with an indoor swimming pool they can use when there. They can also indulge their hobbies.  Gordon spends lots of time outside in the countryside while Sue likes to read. Many of the homes are beautifully decorated, including one grand Victorian house which has been lovingly restored to its former glory.

Sue says,

“It was such a pleasure to sleep in a bedroom with a beautiful antique crystal chandelier! We don’t have much art in our own home, but we’ve stayed in homes with beautiful paintings and sculptures. We have also met some really interesting and successful people, many of whom have become friends.”

 

The benefits of working through Homesitters Ltd include being employed directly by the company. The company offers a high level of service and homesitters are carefully matched with clients, taking into account their preferences, personalities, skills and experiences.

Homesitters can pick and choose their assignments and will almost always visit the home and pets before agreeing to take it on. Homesitters benefit from 24/7 back-up when on assignment and are fully insured through the company too.

For more information about Homesitters Ltd and to apply please visit www.homesitters.co.uk

 

[i] https://www.thisismoney.co.uk/money/markets/article-10490801/Pent-demand-fuels-summer-holiday-splurge-travel-agent-TUI.html

[ii] https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/queens-jubilee-bank-holiday-trick-24234546

Cybersecurity, Job Opportunities, Jobs, News, North of England

Cyber security company, Pentest People, seeks new talent following consecutive year of rapid growth

Additional clients and expansion of services sees 35% increase in headcount and search for new talent

Cybersecurity consultancy, Pentest People, is planning further expansion following its second consecutive year of rapid business growth, which saw revenues increasing by 65% and headcount increased by 35% over the past twelve months.

Organisations commission Pentest People’s cybersecurity experts to test their websites, applications and IT systems for any weaknesses that could allow cybercriminals to steal information, damage IT systems, or hold data to ransom. The company employs a number of CHECK team leaders, who have penetration testing qualifications and experience approved by the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC).

The company, led by technical director, Gavin Watson, and sales director, Anthony Harvey, attributes its rapid growth to its continuous development of new threat assessment, consultancy, and remediation services, in response to increasing cybersecurity risks that affect organisations of all sizes.

“Over the past twelve months Pentest People has continued to grow its client base and expand its range of services, including the addition of cyber incident response, remote-working security assessments, dark web monitoring and zero-day exploit scanning, allowing us to detect, prevent, and remediate the most common cyber risks,” reports Gavin Watson.

Co-founder, Andrew Mason commented, “To support this expansion, we have increased our headcount by 35%, moved into a larger office at the Coach Works in Leeds, opened a second office close to GCHQ at Hub8 Cheltenham and launched an apprentice and graduate recruitment and training programme. We’ve hired thirteen women to join our team in the past year and we’re actively recruiting more female consultants.”

Pentest People now offers a broader range of on-site and online services to clients including:

  • Penetration Testing as a Service provided via the company’s Secure Portal
  • Ransomware defence assessment
  • Remote-working security assessment
  • Zero-day exploit response to alert clients to fresh vulnerabilities
  • Dark web monitoring to proactively search for evidence of stolen data
  • Social engineering assessment to identify where staff education is required
  • Phishing email assessment
  • Firewall ruleset reviews
  • VPN configuration assessment
  • Load testing to identify where third-party service and servers are impacting website user experience
  • Red Team assessment to proactively test organisations’ abilities to withstand targeted cyber attacks

Commenting on the company’s new service development, Gavin Watson, technical director, Pentest People added, “Our initial mission was to provide remote and on-site assessments to uncover vulnerabilities in systems, processes and employee practices that expose companies to cyber attacks. As Pentest People’s team has expanded, we’ve added rapid response services to help clients to fix critical issues resulting from newly discovered vulnerabilities and zero-day exploits. Within hours of any new exploits becoming public knowledge, our cyber security experts scan clients’ systems and provide remediation advice if they are found to be vulnerable.”

The company’s successes have not gone unnoticed and it was recently listed among the Leeds Tech Climbers of inspiring technology companies that are innovating to meet demand and are set for growth and it has been shortlisted for the Prolific North Tech Company of the Year award. Pentest People has also been invited to attend the UK Government’s CYBERUK 2022 event taking place at the International Conference Centre, in Newport, Wales, on 10th – 11th May.

About Pentest People:

Pentest People is a cybersecurity consultancy that provides Penetration Testing as a Service (PTaaS) to organisations in the public and private sectors. This innovative approach to security testing combines the benefits of a consultant-led penetration test, bolstered by continuous vulnerability testing delivered via its SecurePortal®, which provides a living threat monitoring system throughout the contract, rather than a vulnerability assessment taken at a single point in time.

Established by the cybersecurity experts who founded RandomStorm, which was acquired by Accumuli Security in 2014, itself acquired by NCC in 2015, Pentest People operates a growing team of talented consultants, to help leading organisations to manage cyber threats and minimise disruption.

Pentest People is a CREST- accredited company and a CHECK Service Provider for its Penetration Testing services and has attained NCSC Cyber Essentials and Cyber Essentials Plus, as well as earning a place on the G-Cloud 12 framework. Pentest People is also certificated to ISO:9001 and ISO:27001.

For more information, please visit https://www.pentestpeople.com

 

Job Opportunities, Jobs, Midlands News, News

Job seekers invited to Herefordshire employment event

Supported employment and training charity, Landau, has announced further details to its latest job fair in Hereford, which aims to support even more people into the workplace.

The charity is hosting the event on April 27 at the Shell Store in Rotherwas and has secured more than 40 businesses to promote their latest employment opportunities.

Exhibitors cover a range of industries and sectors and include Balfour Beatty, Wye Valley NHS Trust, Barclays Bank, Lidl and West Mercia Police.

Caroline Richardson, head of employment services at Landau, said: “We’re excited to be bringing back our job fair to the Hereford region, after such a successful event last autumn.

“We know times are tough across the job market, so we wanted to bring together a wide range of hiring businesses for job seekers to speak to directly and make those all-important connections.

“Alongside the jobs fair, attendees will be able to speak with employability experts and organisations that can help job seekers maximise their skills and achieve their objectives.”

The event opens at 10am for a networking session, where business leaders can connect and collaborate with other employers, while the job fair opens to prospective employees at 12 noon.

The free event is being delivered in partnership with The Marches Growth Hub, Hereford Enterprise Zone and Herefordshire & Worcestershire Chamber of Commerce.

Landau annually helps in the region of 3,000 individuals back into the workplace or into training schemes through its specialist support. Last year it was awarded the prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise for its work in Promoting Opportunity (through social mobility).

Jobs, News, Travel

Stay for free – become a homesitter and explore the UK for free!

One of the perks of becoming a home and pet sitter is the opportunity to explore new places and stay for free in some amazing homes throughout the UK.

More people are choosing to employ homesitters as it means their animals are cared for in their home environment, which for dogs and cats especially is beneficial, plus their home is occupied which can make it less vulnerable to burglaries.

For anyone considering a part-time and flexible role after retirement it is an ideal choice. Not only can people earn a little bit of extra income and visiting new places and staying for free is a big attraction of the role.

For those considering relocating after retirement to the country or a city, it’s a chance to try out the lifestyle in different places. We have homesitting assignments in a huge variety of homes and locations from country manors in Cornwall to urban penthouses in Edinburgh and everything in between.

Most homesitters are in their 50s, 60s and 70s and many have retired. However, they don’t just want to sit at home after a busy working life and are keen to do something adventurous in retirement.

For two of our homesitters, Martin and Kristine Bell this was exactly why they decided to join us and become professional home and pet sitters.

Martin and Kristine are from Collingham, near Newark in Nottinghamshire and decided to start home and pet sitting after retiring. Martin retired at the age of 60 from a career in industry and legal secretary, Kristine decided to retire at the same time so they could spend more time together.

The couple were keen to use their time to meet new people and visit new places. Homesitting seemed a good way of doing this. They also wanted to spend time with animals without the commitment involved in being a dog owner, after the losing their beloved West Highland Terrier.

The Bell’s first assignment was a 17 day homesit in a lovely rural converted granary which wasn’t without its challenges.

Martin explains, “We were homesitting in a very rural location when Storm Doris hit and the power went off for 12 hours! One of the dogs we were looking after is very elderly with poor eyesight and usually the lights are all set on a timer for him so he can wander around without bumping into anything.

“In the absence of electricity we found as many torches as we could so that the dog could see where he was going! Everything in the house ran on electricity so we had no cooking facilities but the next door neighbour kindly brought round a thermos of hot water so that we could make a cup of tea – it was quite an adventure!”

The Bells love their homesitting lifestyle, they spend the evenings reading, or doing crosswords and puzzles and Kristine enjoys knitting. In one home there was a large dining room table so they did a 1000 piece jigsaw puzzle over the course of their stay.

Martin says, “The best way of spending the evening is having a dog on your knee or by your feet to stroke while you’re reading, it gives us a great feeling of contentment – and the dog too!”

“We’re just ordinary people doing ordinary things and getting the maximum benefit from our retirement. You’d be surprised how many people aren’t aware that home and pet sitting is a job and we’d recommend it to anyone who’s retired. Where else would you get the opportunity to stay in different homes in new places and experience other people’s pets and lifestyles and not have to pay lots of money to do it?”

We are recruiting so if homesitting sounds like an ideal role for you we would love to hear from you. Click here to find out more and to apply.