Looking for a well-educated, untapped pool of talent?

A recruitment fair will be held at RAF Mildenhall, Suffolk, on 25 July for US military personnel leaving the military and for spouses of US airmen who are currently assigned to the UK.

Organisers of the event say that highly-skilled US Air Force members often want to stay in the UK when they leave the military, but rarely know how to tap into the UK job market even when their partners are British.

Also looking for work are the wives and husbands of airmen and civilians who are assigned here on three-to-five-year stays. Jobs on base are limited, which means that the skills of qualified and well-educated professionals often go unused during their stay here.

Under the Status of Forces Agreement between the UK and US, American military spouses are allowed to work off base, once they obtain a National Insurance number, while their husbands or wives are assigned here. "A lot of spouses aren't even aware they can work off base until we tell them," Michelle Routhier of Mildenhall's Airmen and Family Readiness Center told Recruiter. "Then they tell me, 'I want a job!'"

The range of skills on offer include aircraft maintenance, logistics, IT and telecoms, management, teaching, nursing, social work, human resources, accountancy, and office/ administration.

Recent university graduates also figure among the jobseeking population.

Several hundred jobseekers from USAF installations across the UK will attend the fair, which will be held from 10am to 4pm on 25 July.

Recruiters interested in attending must register in advance. Contact either Daisy Jones at [email protected] or 01638 544 056 or Michelle Routhier at [email protected], or telephone 01638 545176.