AN EVENT described as a landmark day in the life of Presteigne Baptist church was held on April 22.

Members of the church wanted to help equip people in their local community to find employment in tough economic times so underwent specialised training from the UK charity Christians Against Poverty.

Now the church will be opening every Friday from 10am and will be offering free workshops to boost the job-hunting process for unemployed people by equipping them with the tools, skills and confidence to find work.

At the meeting Peter Jennings the church Pastor welcomed everyone including representatives of the town council, chamber of trader, the Rotary club, employers, Kirsty Williams and those who are unemployed. He then introduced the team who are Gordon Ames team leader, Jenny and Nick Cavan, Sam Price and himself who will be helped by other church volunteers.

Peter said " We are very pleased to welcome our first Job Club members in what is and exciting day for us all". He continued by saying "The church exists for people, we are part of the community and want to be here for our community. We want to connect job seekers with employers and we want to understand what employers want."

Job Club manager Gordon Ames said "I'm heading up the team and want to particularly welcome those who are here to join the club. I have been unemployed, employed and self employed and with more people facing long term unemployment, there is a real need for a personal service that can provide practical and emotional support for people to find work again. CAP job clubs are designed to do just this."

Presteigne Baptist church is one of more than 140 churches of different Christian traditions across the UK who will be running CAP Job Clubs, as they work together to positively impact the communities around them. The Presteigne Job Club will be working closely with the job centre and is the first in Powys.

CAP Job Club will consist of a weekly course than combines one-to-one consultations, group support and practical sessions that cover topics such as identifying strengths, CV writing and interview techniques.

Gordon added "We hope that we can help people to gain the confidence and skills they need to find employment, particularly for those who may have been out of work for a long period of time."

Three long term unemployed people who attended the meeting and then the Job Club said they found out about the club through the Job Centre and were all feeling very positive about this new club.

The club will run weekly at 10am every Friday's in Presteigne Baptist church Hereford Street, Presteigne.

To find out more about CAP Job Clubs or to book a place visit capjobclubs.org or telephone 08003280006.