Bernard’s Story, Future Skills

After being out of work for a while, I reluctantly applied for the Step into Employment following pressure from my mum.

On the first day at Bryson FutureSkills, my employment officer really took the time to find out exactly what my needs were and what I wanted to get from the course. I knew that I needed to gain not just a qualification but also real work experience. While working towards the OCR qualification, I learnt so much about job searching, interview methods, CV writing and even tips for managing money. Twice a week, I attended job search meetings at Bryson where the staff were always on hand to help with tailoring my CV to the range of jobs I found on the job sites I didn’t even know existed when I was out of work.

The best part of this course was gaining work experience at Helm Housing. At first, I was a bit nervous but the staff really put me at ease and encouraged me to get stuck in straight away, putting me on the phones on the first day. The hands-on experience really built my confidence and immediately I felt that I was part of the team. I had regular contact with my Employment Officer throughout the placement who couldn’t do enough for me. She made sure that I was aware of every aspect of the scheme and helped me to plan out everything I needed. I was delighted when I was offered a six month contract working part time, which is a massive step toward my objective of getting into full time work.

Taking part in the Step into Employment scheme has been life changing for me. I feel much more confident and positive about the future. I’d definitely recommend this scheme for anybody having trouble getting into employment.