Kirsty Williams AM has opened the Powys Careers Festival at the Royal Welsh Showground in Llanelwedd, supporting young people in making decisions about their future.

Around 3,000 pupils from across Powys are expected to attend the one-day Choose Your Future Powys Careers Festival which opened this morning.

Exhibitors from a wide range of sectors are there representing universities, colleges, private and public sector employers and the voluntary sector, giving young people the opportunity to hear from industry experts first hand.

Among this year's speakers are Jason Pritchard from Toyota in Builth Wells and radio presenter Ben Sheppard, who attended Gwernyfed High School where he was head boy. Oil for Wales are also attending.

The event connects young people with potential employers and aims to inform young people of the opportunities available to them when they leave compulsory education. It is organised by the multi-agency group Positive Pathways Powys.

Opening the event Welsh government education minister Ms Williams, who is also the Assembly Member for Brecon and Radnorshire, said: “Leaving compulsory education can be a huge step in anyone’s life. I want young people to have the information they need to make the best decision for them, so I was delighted to be able to open the Powys Careers Festival today.

“There were a wide range of people to speak to and potential employers to interact with, as well as hands-on workshops and demonstrations. I hope it was beneficial for our young people who attended.”

The interactive careers and skills festival is organised by the Positive Pathways Powys partnership – a multi-agency group made up of Powys County Council, Careers Wales, Secondary schools in the county, the NPTC Group of Colleges, Cambrian Training and the Powys Association of Voluntary Organisations. The partnership aims to highlight to young people the opportunities available to them when they leave school or college.

The 2019 Powys Careers Festival is being sponsored by Careers Wales, NPTC, Compact Orbital Gears, Royal Welsh Agricultural Show, Cambrian Training, Radnor Hills, Abacare, Dawnus, ACT Training, Lanyon Bowdler, West Ent and the Reaching Wider Partnership.