Work and training – Laura’s success

Laura was referred to the Employment Support and Training service by her New Directions Advisor. Laura had previously completed training courses with New Directions and wanted to continue receiving help and support to get a job.

Laura is 26 and lives with her mum in Redcar and receives Universal Credit.

I met with Laura at Westfield Farm where we discussed the jobs that appealed her, the training courses she has completed, recent job interviews attended and where she was realistically able to travel to.

Laura had recently completed a Get into Retail course with the Prince’s Trust and successfully completed a 12-week placement at Marks and Spencer. The valuable experience Laura gained from this work helped her to decide that retail was the ideal job for her.

Following the completion of the course and placement, Laura applied for several retail jobs, one of which she had interviewed for at Superdrug in Stockton. She felt the interview had gone well but hadn’t heard anything so wasn’t feeling too hopeful with not hearing back. Not long after our first appointment, Laura contacted me with the wonderful news that she had been successful with a position as an E-Store Assistant for 20 hours a week and couldn’t be happier.

At Laura’s following appointment we discussed the job offer, the start date and looked at what travel options were available to her. We also looked at better off calculations so she could see exactly how much she would earn each month and what her travel costs would be. As Laura had accepted the job, I was able to put her in contact with a Routes to Work Advisor from Redcar & Cleveland Council to help cover travel costs until she gets paid.

Laura has now started her training with Superdrug and is looking forward to her future.

Good luck with your job!