Kingston Council hosted a job fair today, 15 February, at Main Guildhall on High Street, as a part of its wider efforts to deal with the ongoing cost of living crisis affecting countless households across the borough.

The event was open to all residents, with Jobcentre Plus customers being encouraged to register their attendance with their work coach.

It is the sixth event run in partnership with Kingston Jobcentre Plus this financial year, with the previous events seeing over 1200 attendees and 300 confirmed jobs or training outcomes overall in the last year according to the Council.

A sizeable crowd attended the fair in Kingston's Guildhall earlier today, 15 February (Photo: Kingston Council)

RBK hopes that the fair will further the goals of its 'Skills and Employment Action Plan', which aims to help residents and businesses "grow, achieve their potential, and overcome barriers [to employment]".

The plan has been created in close-collaboration with "major contractors and building developers" to help provide a number of training and educational opportunities in the region.

This includes jobs and careers coaching for unemployed or low-income residents, such as the Thrive Kingston Programme created in partnership with Accenture, an Irish-American Fortune Global 500 company.

The plan aims to address three "core underlying challenges" of participation, transition and "additional barriers," such as disabilities and mental illnesses, as outlined in a 2022 document approved for adoption by the Council's Place Committee..

It is yet to be seen how successful the Council's plan has been, although a review is due in the near future.

Today also marked the launch of the Council's Work Skills Kingston employability digital badging programme, funded by the Department for Education under its South London Local Skills Improvement Plan.

Kingston Councillor Alison Holt, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Economic Development & Leisure, launched the Council's new Work Skills Kingston employability digital badging programme at the event (Photo: Kingston Council)

Nub News has not been provided with any further details of the new programme at this time.