THE Lord Mayor of Oxford gave his seal of approval to the ‘best ever’ Oxford Times jobs fair as more than a thousand people came along.

The event in Town Hall yesterday – organised by the Oxford Mail’’s sister title – was attended by leading Oxfordshire companies, which spoke to potential recruits about what positions were on offer.

Organisations included Paterson Recruitment, the British Army, Thames Valley Police, Welcome Break, Day and Nightcare Assistance and bus company Stagecoach.

Lord Mayor Mohammed Altaf-Khan also joined them, and said: “This is a great effort from The Oxford Times at a time when many people are still struggling to find work.

“Events like this help bring employers together in one place so people can see what is out there.”

The jobs fair attracted 25 top businesses, with organisers saying it was their ‘best ever’.

Lisa Sephton, from Bicester, said she had come along to look for a career change after being made redundant by a fruit and veg supplier.

The 37-year-old said: “I’ve never really been in this position before so I’ve come along to look for new opportunities and see what’s out there.

“The recruitment agency I’ve spoken to so far, Paterson, were really helpful.”

Paterson Recruitment marketing coordinator Kim Calve said the company regularly finds ‘high-quality recruits’ at job fairs.

She added: “It’s a great way to meet people in the local area who are looking for work. We can tailor what we offer and are very flexible.”

Julie Harmsworth, HR advisor at Kingwood, said it was the company’s first time at The Oxford Times fair.

She added: “We are hoping to recruit support workers for our charity, which does important work helping people with autism and Asperger’s live independently.

“It’s good to be able to talk to people here and explain, because the roles do not actually require a background in care.

“We are quite a small organisation and that is actually quite nice – people tend to stay with us.”

The jobs fair was sponsored by care provider Day and Nightcare Assistance. It followed well-attended fairs last February and September.

Newsquest media sales manager Belinda Rand, who helped to organise the fair, said: “All our exhibitors have been really happy with the footfall and high-quality candidates and people told us they really got something out of it. We are over the moon, it has been our best jobs fair.”