Norwich Union, York's biggest financial services employer, is taking on 250 new jobs in the city as it shifts emphasis from Croydon in London to York.

The jobs are needed as part of the life assurance company's expansion in life and pension products.

The first of three recruitment open days takes place at the firm's Yorkshire House offices in Rougier Street on Monday. The expansion should bring the number of people on the company payroll at various offices in York to more than 2,500.

The good news was today welcomed by Graeme Rudd, client services executive for York Inward investment Board.

He said that indigenous growth, particularly from such a blue-chip company, was "further demonstration of the confidence of Norwich Union in York and its labour force."

"It also signifies York's growing credentials and strengths in the service sector industry and is an example to potential inward investors."

A spokesman for Norwich Union Life said: "We are moving some of our administration processing investment business from Croydon to York and as a result we are looking for recruits.

"But the exact location of the new offices to accommodate them in York is something we are working on."

He said that it was sensible to move some administration jobs to the York head office, where product development, marketing and other decisions were made.

Announcement of the expansion in York which had been planned for some time comes in the wake of interim results showing profits for Norwich Union's UK Life business of £473 million for the first six months of 2001.

Job advertisements call for people who could be "at any stage of their life" with communications skills to talk and write to a variety of customers and the ability to gather information and answer questions relating to their policies.

All that is needed are basic keyboard skills and GCSE's or equivalent in maths and English.

Open days will also be staged at Yorkshire House on Thursday and on August 30.

Updated: 15:25 Friday, August 17, 2001