An innovative online jobs fair was popular with employers and employees alike after it was attended by more than 350 people and 29 job positions were offered on the spot.

The Watford Chamber of Commerce has been a big advocate for the Government’s Kickstart Scheme since it was launched.

The scheme aims to provide more jobs for young people, while simultaneously giving monetary support to the businesses willing to hire them.

The Chamber is a gateway for businesses to sign up for the scheme and it further helped support it by staging the One Stop Job Shop earlier this month.

With help from Watford Jobcentre Plus and the Department for Work and Pensions, the event provided an innovative online platform for businesses to scout out, interview and hire any of the hundreds of young people looking to fill a Kickstart placement.

In addition to the 29 positions offered on the spot, a further 84 young people were referred through the One Stop Job Shop which aimed to streamline the employment process.

Vacancies sometimes don’t get seen or the application and interview process can be long and arduous, but this event provided obvious advertisement of Kickstart job vacancies for those interested, while also allowing employers to interview and hire any young people they met on the spot. It essentially condensed two weeks of employee hunting, interviewing and approval into just over two hours.

The process was possible by using the REMO platform, a new way to host online events with hundreds of attendees.

It enabled the Watford Chamber to give employers a virtual space that attracted young people interested in their industry, providing the outlet to present, discuss and interview attendees.

For more information about getting involved in the Kickstart scheme through the Chamber, visit https://watfordchamber.co.uk/government-kickstart-campaign/ or email Ines@watford-chamber.co.uk