Simon found employment with the support of Communities for Work Plus after being made homeless and losing his job due to the Covid19 pandemic.
A brighter future is ahead for Simon. He was referred to Working Denbighshire from the Denbighshire Homeless Team in October 2021. He had been working abroad in a very successful career but had to return home in August 2020 when his line of work dried up due to the pandemic. He lived with relatives for a short while however the health conditions of his relatives made this difficult so he ended up in a tent with no job, no home and very little belongings. He even had to give up his car.
Once our employment mentor received Simon’s referral, she phoned him to complete the enrolment paperwork. He was living in homeless accommodation. Simon had travelled the world with his work and found being out of work and relying on the ‘system’ very scary.
Simon had a CV which was very specific to his previous line of work so we started by adapting his CV to opportunities that are available locally which suited his skill set.
Simon received a phone call each week from his mentor to see how he was getting on and to discuss the latest job vacancies available. Simon was very proactive in looking for work and would spend hours searching the internet and had signed up with temping agencies.
After a short period of time, Simon was able to move out of his temporary accommodation into his own flat.
In February 2021 after numerous job applications completed and a few setbacks, Simon rang his mentor to inform that he had an interview for a job which he was excited about. The role was discussed; it was perfect for him as he had lots of transferable skills. Simon said ‘I couldn’t have got this far without you Jen, so thank you very much – I’m feeling very hopeful.’ Jen was so pleased for him as the role came with a company car, phone and tablet and would be life changing for Simon.
Simon rang to say he got the job which was fantastic news. ‘Thanks for all your help Jen I couldn’t have done it without you, I’m really enjoying meeting people and the job is no problem.
Although Simon was able to look for opportunities and apply for job vacancies himself, the additional telephone support enabled Simon to stay motivated and on track. This was a very difficult time for Simon however due to the support of the Homeless Team and Working Denbighshire, he was able to turn his life around in a short period of time.
Due to the restrictions all support was provided via telephone, online video calls or email.
For More Information
Jen Dutton, Community Employment Mentor (Cfw+)