GETTING BACK INTO WORK AFTER 19 YEARS!
A positive difference for Clare and her whole family.
Clare Richardson had been a full-time parent since 2002, dedicating her time and energy to raising her young family. The pandemic negatively affected her partner’s business, leading to financial strain and a joint claim for Universal Credit. Clare was referred to the Restart Scheme and there she met Employment Coach, Jennifer Cabena at Jobs 22's Tamworth branch. “I was looking for a job that would flex around childcare and my family commitments. When Jennifer and I talked about my long-term goals I explained that I wanted to train as a nail technician and set up my own business. But before any of that I needed to get my CV up-to-date.”
Jennifer worked with Clare to update her CV and communicate her skills to employers. Clare revealed, “I must admit I was a worried about the employment gap and what employers would think. But Jennifer worked with me to demonstrate all the transferable skills I had learnt as a parent and helped me see that I have a lot to offer.”
Together, Jennifer and Clare discussed the type of roles that would work best around Clare’s care responsibilities and settled on part-time cleaning. Jennifer said, “After working on Clare’s CV, I managed to source a local cleaning role. I contacted the employer, and they were happy to be flexible around Clare’s childcare and school drop-off provided she worked three hours Monday- Friday.”
Jennifer contacted Clare with the good news and together they completed a ‘Better off in work’ calculation over the phone. Clare and her partner were surprised by the results and how much better off they’d be if she took the role. “I was surprised by the positive financial impact. I knew it could be a really positive thing for me and improve our whole family’s quality of life.”
After Clare’s induction, her employer contacted Jennifer just to feedback how ‘fantastic’ Clare has been in the role. In addition, Clare received positive feedback directly from her manager who praised her work and said she had fitted in well. Clare said, “I’m over the moon and appreciate the ongoing support from Jennifer and the opportunity to access a part-funded nail technician course from Jobs 22.”