by Anna White

awhite@thekmgroup.co.uk

After being offered a post which didn't exist, the last thing job seeker Adam Hogg expected was to clear Royal Mail's robust security system.

Blundering bosses sent the 17-year-old a company ID card for its Maidstone sorting office - even though there was no job available.

He had successfully applied for a temporary role at the base in Sandling Road, only to have the opportunity snatched away weeks later when he was told there had been a mistake and there was no position to offer.

Adam, of Beaconsfield Road, Tovil, has since secured an apprenticeship at a warehouse in Park Wood, but was baffled when a Royal Mail employment pack fell on the doormat earlier this month.

The former MidKent College student said: "I was really confused as it had been months since the job mix-up happened.

"They are lucky I'm not a dishonest person as I could probably walk into any Royal Mail office with this pass.

"It's a bit of a cheek to send me an ID card considering they offered me a job that didn't exist. I was really happy when first told I had got the job as I had been out of work for about three months, so I was extremely disappointed when I found out they had made a mistake.

"You'd think that it would be more organised considering the size of the company."

Royal Mail spokesman Sally Hopkins said the company had more than six people chasing every vacancy, with 110,000 applications for 18,000 temporary posts across the country.

She said: "We are sorry if anyone feels the recruitment process did not meet the high standards Royal Mail always seeks to achieve."