THOUSANDS of teenagers descended on Maidstone Leisure Centre to find out about job prospects once they complete full-time education.

The second two-day Maidstone Schools Careers Fair was opened by the Mayor of Maidstone, Cllr Pat Marshall. It featured 40 employers including the NHS, the Army, Kent Police, the Kent Messenger Group and local government.

The event was oranised by Maidstone and Mid Kent Chamber of Commerce with support from the Kent Messenger. Sean Randell, the chamber's chief executive declared the event a great success with 3,200 pupils aged between 14 and 17 passing through.

He said: "We were so busy at times that many of the employers represented ran out of leaflets.

"It was fantastic to see so much enthusiasm shown by the children who were all keen to find out what sort of profession they might be interested in and the minimum criteria required."