Staff at Coventry City Council’s Job Shop held a celebratory job fair event this week to mark their 10-year anniversary operating from the Bull Yard.
The event was a huge success with over 30 employers from organisations such as CV Life, Mod Pods, National Infrastructure Solutions, JD Sports, RMF Construction and Iceland. Both past and present customers attended the event to celebrate this special occasion.
The Job Shop first opened in Hertford Street in March 2012 as part of Coventry City Council’s Jobs Strategy to help local people find work and after proving a huge success it found the need to move to bigger premises in the Bull Yard in 2013.
On Monday 2 January 2023, the Job Shop reached its 10-year anniversary at its current home in the Bull Yard. Since that time, more than 53,000 Coventry residents have registered and the team has supported over 12,500 people into employment, whilst working with 200 businesses each year to support their recruitment.
Councillor George Duggins, Leader of Coventry City Council, attended the event. He said: “When we set out on the Job Strategy, the Job Shop became part of it and it’s the staff that have made it work. They are friendly, they are a team and they regard themselves as a family which is clear to see. They have been amazing.
“Just seeing the amount of people that attended the celebratory job fair is absolutely superb. Employers gave employees the chance to talk to them and really welcomed them. The Job Shop really has exceeded all of the expectations I ever had of it when we put together the job strategy 13 years ago”.
The Job Shop work with partners across the city and actively works with employers to generate opportunities for local people. The team offer support in the search for employment, training, apprenticeships, and work placements.
Lindsey Hines, Events Coordinator and Employment Coach at the Job Shop said: “I am extremely proud of the Job Shop’s success. I absolutely love my job. It’s so rewarding seeing our customers who have barriers progress and watching our job coaches help them get to where they want to be.
“The relocation of the Job Shop is going to be amazing. We’re really excited for it. It will open up so much. From bigger premises we will be able to work together with more partners from across the city to help even more customers.
Customers can gain exclusive access to a wide range of local vacancies that are updated daily and access training opportunities. The Job Shop offers friendly, helpful advice from a skilled team: from having your CV reviewed to getting support with transport costs and all things work-related.
Alisha Yadav, a Job Shop customer said: “I don’t think many people would be where they are today without the Job Shop. When I’ve been in before just to visit or say hello to everyone, the staff are always so happy and if there was ever a problem, someone would always sort it. It’s an absolutely amazing environment and they have helped me so much.”
As part of the city centre south developments, the Job Shop will be relocating to a new unit in West Orchards. This move is being funded by the UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) in agreement with the West Midlands Combined Authority.
More information about the relocation will be released soon.