IT contractors with experience of senior positions may be pleased to hear that the Department of Work and Pensions' Jobsearch scheme for high-end vacancies has been extended.

The government has decided that the worthwhile programme should now run until March next year, reports the Recruitment & Employment Confederation (REC).

It is one of the few such initiatives that has been retained as the new coalition government make series of cutbacks in a bid to curb public spending.

The REC's director of external relations Tom Hadley said the decision was excellent news for those who are looking for work, as the government cuts make conditions even more difficult.

"This is an endorsement of both the credence and success of the scheme in giving high end jobseekers the best support and advice possible," he said.

Research from management consultancy Knox D'Arcy appeared to justify public sector jobs cuts earlier this month, when it suggested that if properly run, local councils could do the same amount of work with 500,000 fewer staff.