Seasonal jobs boost at Telford Shopping Centre

Hundreds of seasonal jobs will be up for grabs in stores across Telford shopping centre over the busy Christmas and New Year period, it was announced today.

Nearly a quarter of the 200 Christmas vacancies will be provided by department store Debenhams, which is joining forces with House of Fraser to hold a one-stop shop for jobseekers next month.

It comes as Sainsbury's today announced it is to create up to 14,100 seasonal jobs across the UK over the festive period.

Bosses at Telford Shopping Centre said stores would be taking on the temporary workers from November to mid-January.

Martin Purchase, store manager at Debenhams, said they would have 42 vacancies, with the majority of those for shop floor staff.

He said it was positive news and added: "It's the busiest time of the year and we need the extra staff."

Tracy Hadley, marketing and promotions manager at the shopping centre, said: "Stores throughout the centre are currently busy planning for the festive period and determining their staffing needs.

"We estimate that there will be in the region of 200 temporary part-time vacancies to fill before the Christmas rush proper starts in November.

"Two of our major stores, House of Fraser and Debenhams, will be launching their seasonal recruitment drive on October 7.

"From the Thursday to Saturday, staff will be on hand in Dean Square to meet potential recruits and guide them through the application process.

"Other stores within the centre are currently promoting temporary vacancies themselves in-store."

The jobs at Sainsbury's, which has stores in Telford, Shrewsbury and Bridgnorth, will be a mixture of full and part-time, covering areas including checkout, customer service and online shopping from late November.

Helen Webb, Sainsbury's retail human resources director, said: "Last year 24 million customers visited our stores in the week leading up to Christmas and our seasonal colleagues are absolutely crucial."

By Lisa Rowley