What are Career Fairs?
Our Careers Fairs can range from a large-scale event at a central location with many businesses, school students and job seekers attending. To smaller-scale in-school events aimed at a specific business sector.
Careers fairs provide the perfect opportunity for businesses to raise their profile with our future workforce, inform young people about the opportunities within the organisation and showcase the different routes available. These events enable young people to gain invaluable real-life interactions with businesses. They inspire and motivate as well as showing the immense diversity of jobs and career paths available to them.
Destinations Expo is our annual interactive careers fair for Year 11-13 West Berkshire and North Hampshire students. It is the largest of its type in the area and is a fantastic opportunity for local businesses to source new talent, inspire the future workforce and showcase the benefits of working for an organisation.
Universities and pathway providers are invited from further afield and have the opportunity to engage with up to 1500 students.
For students, free coach travel is provided for West Berkshire & North Hampshire Schools thanks to the generosity of our main funder Greenham Common Trust and this valuable day offers students the chance to meet with and question up to 75 local employers and pathway providers who are actively recruiting young people in the area!
Sponsorship enquiries are invited from local businesses who wish to enhance their experience of the Expo.
Our next Destinations Expo will be held at Newbury College on Thursday 10th October 2024.
If your school would like to be involved, please get in touch: GeorginaCR@ebp.org.uk
If your organisation would like to book a stand, click here for further details:
https://educationbusinesspartnership.co.uk/destinations-expo-2024/
Here’s what some of our employers and pathway providers said about 2023’s students:
“Destinations Expo is so important for students to start engaging with professionals, but also for employers to identify interests from their future workforce.”
“It was useful for students to build their confidence to approach the stands, so many missed out on careers fairs and work experience due to Covid at an earlier age.”
“I really appreciated the chance to meet young people and talk about university options with them.”
“This event is now the start of Xtrac’s apprenticeship recruitment as we get so many positive enquiries that turn into employment. The timing of this is perfect.”
Here’s what our students had to say about some of the organisations who attended in 2023:
UKRI ~ “They had many apprenticeships I was interested in and were really helpful”
University of Northampton ~ “Enthusiastic delegate plus they have a wide variety of history options I was interested in”
AWE ~ “Lots of career choices and has helped me explore my options.”
Waitrose ~ “They explained fully, weren’t pushy and were interesting and nice people.”
Festival of Engineering
We were delighted to plan and deliver Festival of Engineering, a day hosted by local MP’s Richard Benyon (West Berkshire) and Kit Malthouse (North West Hampshire) Four hundred students came together at Xtrac Ltd, Thatcham to celebrate and support the Government’s Year of Engineering along with eighteen prestigious engineering companies, including: Xtrac Ltd, Thames Water, Dyson Foundation, Highways England, SSE plc, Vodafone, Thatcham Research, Cirrus Logic, The British Army, SMI, Ocado, AWE, Harwell RAL, Westcoast Ltd and Bloodhound SSC
“From every perspective the day exceeded my expectations. The excitement felt throughout the space at Xtrac was palpable and everywhere you looked there were students intently engaged with the activities and challenges on offer.
This was exactly what we hoped to achieve and it means that every one of those students has now had the opportunity to discover more about the world of engineering and how it might suit them in the future.”
MP, Richard Benyon
Jobfest
We were delighted to be Swindon Borough Council’s chosen partner for JobFest Swindon. The event took plac
e on 6th March 2018 at STEAM in Swindon. JobFest is a large-scale careers event attended by over 60 businesses and 500 students and job seekers.
Small-scale events
In-school fairs
Students engage with a range of businesses, from a wide variety of sectors, and local colleges within a ‘speed dating’ format. Students have time with each organisation followed by extra time where they can talk, in depth, with any business or training provider that they were particularly interested in.
To find out more about how your business can get involved with our Careers Fairs or how we can help your business, school or college inspire, develop and motivate our future workforce, please contact Lesley Stewart.
Phone: 01635 279206 or email us