Carol first engaged with our employment support service in early 2022. She had been out of work for several years because her main focus was being a carer for her son. During this time Carol volunteered with Hexagon because she was keen to get involved in shaping the delivery of our services and keeping her skills updated. She has been one of our Estate Graders since 2006.
Carol was initially looking to complete functional skills training and her advisor referred her to an online course, but she was unable to complete this due to other commitments on her time.
Carol then took some time out from accessing support , but re-engaged again in July 2023 because she was interested in attending the 7 Signs employability course we paid for Clean Slate to deliver to Hexagon residents. This course covered information on CVs, interviews, networking and promoting yourself to employers.
Carol attended the 2 day course in August and fed back that she found it to be very helpful and engaging. She felt even more motivated to find paid work and liaised with her advisor to update her CV. Following this, she was referred to do a mock interview with our contractor Murray Birrell, in September,
so she could put the learning from the Clean Slate course into practice. Carol said of her experience,
“At the beginning of the interview I was nervous but as it progressed I was more relaxed. They were excellent Interviewers, made me feel welcome and gave good feedback. Thank you for this opportunity it really helped my confidence on doing Interviews in the future.”
Carol and her advisor continued to work together and a couple of months, later her advisor referred her to a Peer Worker programme that provides training and paid part-time employment.
Carol had to be interviewed for the programme and effectively put the training and mock interview feedback to use by securing a place on the programme.
Carol now works for Clean Slate as a Peer Worker on a fixed term contract and is completing an accredited Mental Health course. She can continue to access support to find ongoing work beyond her fixed term contract.
Carol said, “I am a hardworking, motivated individual with a friendly and approachable personality. It feels good to earn money to use these skills. I’m enjoying working and doing the course. I feel I’m living large and in charge.”
