Mr A was unemployed for 2 years prior to receiving support from C4W+, he gained full time employment as a ‘Multi Skilled Apprentice’ on a fixed 2-year contract which commenced January, 2021 with the advice and support of his Employment Mentor.
Mr A was referred from the Job Centre, he was in receipt of Universal Credit under the Intensive Work Search regime as he had been unemployed for over 18 months.
Mr A had approximately 10 years work experience in various positions including labouring, factory and warehouse work. He had a history of either worked for agencies or on short term contracts which meant he had a lot of gaps in his employment history where he was out of work. Mr A was laid off from his last job as a labourer in January, 2018 and had been out of work since. Mr A had left school with no qualifications and did not attend any Further Education institutions, he did however have a valid CSCS card to work on a construction site. Mr A felt he was at an age where he wanted to gain new skills and qualifications to enable him to progress in his career and to gain a trade. Ideally, he wanted to do an apprenticeship that allowed him to train on the job, gain qualifications and earn a living wage at the same time.
Although Mr A had previous work experience, he felt that being out of work for over 18 months had a negative impact on his self-esteem and therefore lacked confidence when applying for jobs.
On joining C4W+ Mr A was supported to explore different construction routes and career paths, including going to college to gain qualifications and alternative employment routes. Mr A decided an apprenticeship route would be the best option for him, as he would gain the skills and qualifications required to do the job as well earn a wage.
His mentor created an action plan which highlighted Mr A’s support needs and barriers for him to gain employment. The action plan included setting small goals to help increase his self-esteem and confidence by creating a CV, attending a jobs club and having interview skills sessions. The mentor supported Mr A to create a CV that highlighted his skills, experiences and achievements. In addition, Mr A attended interview skills training sessions to improve his confidence and interview techniques. Additional support was offered on how to use various video conferencing platforms as due to the pandemic, more and more interviews were being conducted this way, thus being a new experience for Mr A.
Following the intensive job support, Mr A was successful in being offered an interview for an apprenticeship position. This was the first interview Mr A had been invited to since being laid off from his last job nearly 2 years ago. Mr A felt confident he would perform well at interview, and was offered the position just before Christmas on the 15th December with a start date of the 6th January, 2021.
Mr A was over joyed to have been offered this job opportunity, not just because he had got a job, but the fact that he would receive on the job training and be able to attend college to work towards a NVQ Level 2 qualification. Mr A had assumed as he was in his 30’s, he would never be able to do an apprenticeship, so this was a dream come true! Mr A has since started the job and he is really enjoying it. We completed our final appointment together, and his Work Star chart reflected an increase in his self-esteem.
Mr A said he wanted to thank his mentor, ‘Melanie Sillett’ for all her support and encouragement, consequently helping him gain employment. He also said he was very grateful for the financial support he received for travel to enable him to get to and from work, due to having to work a full week in hand.
Intensive job support, regular contact and encouragement – never give up on your dreams!
For More Information
Please contact: Melanie Sillett – Community Employment Mentor
Telephone: 07768 006414
E-mail: Melanie.Sillett@denbighshire.gov.uk