Building confidence – Stella’s story

When Stella joined Better Working Futures, she met with Employment Adviser, Megan, who got to know her situation, job goals, and work experience.

Stella had previously worked in credit control and was looking for work in a similar job sector. During her initial appointment, she discussed her barriers to work with Megan, and the anxieties she had around returning to work again. Stella explained that she needed more confidence before applying for any roles.

Our Employment Advisers are there to support participants with developing their skills and explore the opportunities available with transferrable skills.

Megan was able to support Stella with CV writing sessions and interview preparation, which in turn, helped Megan to gain insight on Stella’s transferrable skills and the types of roles she would benefit from the most.

“Over time, Stella’s confidence grew from speaking to myself and the team in the office. From attending all her appointments, and sessions she got to know the team well, and you could see the confidence boost each time we met”, said Megan.

“After completing in-house wellbeing session, Stella began demonstrating her proactivity, by searching for job roles, asking questions and practicing her interview techniques with us.”

A role in refugee support became available and was suggested by one of our Recruitment Managers, as they knew of Stella’s work history. With the support of Megan, Stella jumped at the opportunity and applied for the role that same day. Prepared with advice, mock interviews, and new smart clothing, Stella was ready to go.

Stella was invited to interview and was successful!

“Thanks to the dedicated support and guidance we provided, Stella successfully transitioned into working life and is now starting the in-work support phase of the service.”

In-work support is available once our participants start work, with progression reviews offered to support with salary increase, hours, or review of trading for self-employed participants.

Stella shared: “I would recommend Better Working Futures to anyone, and I am very grateful for all the support I have received. Sending a sincere thank you to everyone, especially Megan, my Employment Adviser.

“I joined the programme with low self-esteem and confidence, and they have helped me immensely to improve this. If I can do it, anyone can do it. Never give up and believe in yourself.”