THE Northern Echo's Job Fair 2002 was a huge success yesterday, providing hundreds of people with career opportunities and advice.

The exhibition, which has been running for eight years, was held for the first time at Blackwell Grange Hotel, Grange Road, Darlington.

Linda Paramor, of The Northern Echo, said: "The event was moved here to target a different calibre of people. Its been absolutely heaving."

The job fair gave a broad spectrum of advice about career opportunities and training to people in many different circumstances.

Information was readily available for those seeking a new job or to retrain, and to those who are unsure about what career path to take.

"A lot of graduates were here today who don't know particularly what they want to do. This has given them an opportunity to decide on their career.

"They were able to talk to businesses on a one-to-one level," said Ms Paramor.

There were 26 stands at the exhibition, including the RAF, Middleton St George Hospital and Fish4 Jobs, providing people with a more focused approach to career opportunities.

Ms Paramor said that it had been a huge success.

"People should come along next year, even if they are not thinking about a change in their career, to get an idea of what is available to them," she said.