More than 100 refugees have attended a special job fair in Ealing hosted by West London NHS Trust. The job fair helps both the NHS and refugees as they can utilise their skills from health and medical backgrounds to support the local community.
The event at Trailfinders Sports Club, saw refugees from countries including Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine.
According to the Trust, this is possibly the first time ever there has been a refugee focused NHS recruitment event in London and is a project started earlier this year by Trust chief executive Carolyn Regan.
Nathan Christie-Plummer, Deputy Director of Workforce at West London NHS Trust, said: “West London NHS Trust is an anchor institution and has a social responsibility to engage all parts of the community, including those who have travelled overseas as refugees. We’re committed to becoming an inclusive and representative organisation with our staff representing those we support.”
Mr Christie-Plummer added: “Targeting workers from both clinical and non-clinical backgrounds is also important to developing our highly skilled workforce, which boasts more than 4,000 employees. Prior to the fair, the project had managed to find employment for 11 refugees across Trusts in North West London, including six in West London, with a further 26 candidates being considered for roles. The number will drastically increase thanks to the recruitment fair.”
At the event, employers from the various NHS Trusts across North West London met with 117 refugee candidates and held face-to-face interviews.
On the day, the Trust interviewed and offered jobs to 21 refugees, who applied for the role of Health Care Support Worker as well as hiring six admin staff, two facilities technicians and received 26 expressions of interest for a variety of roles. The Trust also had 30 volunteers agree sign up and work with staff.
Other North West London NHS partners had interest in roles. London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust (LNWH) received 35 applications, Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS (Chelwest) 60, Central and North West London NHS Foundation Trust (CNWL) 80 and Imperial College London had 80 applications.
