BUS company Arriva will issue 500 free bus travel tickets in East Cleveland to help unemployed people to travel to a job and skills opportunity day.

The Village Skills event will be held at Redcar and Cleveland College next Wednesday and is expected to attract more than 5,000 people.

Free bus tickets, funded by the Government's Single Regeneration Budget, are available from Loftus, Eston and Redcar Job Centres, Reed in Partnership, South Bank, The Wise Group and Positive People Development in Redcar and at the FROG office and Linc Centre in Grangetown.

The Skills Village will be open from 10am until 6.30pm and there will be representatives from more than 110 organisations, including the RAF, Transco and Hollywood Bowl.

Colleges, universities, chemical, engineering and construction companies, transport industry and training providers will be there.

Graham Hubbard, Job Connect project officer, said: "Every resident in Redcar and Cleveland Borough Council area is invited. We want people to look at what's on offer and consider the possibility of training for a new career or get involved in volunteer work".

The Skills Village has been set up by a number of agencies including the borough council, and Learning and Skills Council.