Former Olympic Games workers were invited to a jobs fair with the aim of getting into long-term employment.

Two thousand people flocked to the Old Town Hall in Stratford on Wednesday to meet people from companies such as Stagecoach, Debenhams, Asda and Securitas.

The event, organised by JobCentre Plus, will be the first in a series held to assist ex-Olympic venue staff and Games Makers into new roles.

Brian McKeown, from Jobcentre Plus, said: “It was great to see so many people here who helped to make the Games such a success.

“All the employers here know what a great job these people did at the Olympics and we want to help them turn their invaluable experience into a job.”

Steve Stewart, from Stagecoach, said that many of the habits picked up by Games Makers will be handy in the workplace.

He added: “People who worked as volunteers during the Games have the kind of skills, such as helping customers and experience of working non-standard hours, that mean they could be good candidates for jobs when we have vacancies.”