Fair Start Scotland supported Fiona to find
part-time work and she is now “the happiest she has been in years."
Why Fiona joined Fair Start Scotland
Fiona, a Fair Start Scotland participant, had experience in both kitchen porter work and cleaning positions before she joined the service, but she had been unemployed for two years. Fiona was thorough in her job searching, however she found that she could not get past the interview stage and she decided that she needed help to build her confidence and interview skills.
Fiona had a very basic CV when she joined the programme and mentioned that she was not the best with technology and writing, so she wished to improve this also.
How Fair Start Scotland helped
We supported Fiona by updating her CV initially, so that she was giving a good impression to the employers she was applying to. We ran her CV through the Fedcap Hub, and after it was updated, achieved a score of 85% which was a great start.
Fiona was not very confident in her computer skills, but after a few sessions with both her personal adviser and our employer engagement adviser, she became more and more comfortable using her iPad. Improving her computer skills allowed Fiona to attend our virtual workshops including CV and Cover Letter workshops. As she became more confident using Zoom, Fiona began to participate in mock interviews via Zoom calls and said these made her feel much more prepared for real life interviews. Fiona soon went on to use her iPad to complete various Digital College courses including First Aid and Food Safety and Hygiene. Fiona has now successfully completed 11 digital courses in total which she said she never thought she’d have been able to do on her own.
Fiona’s CV has been updated with all of her training and now reflects how hard she has been working to achieve all of her soft-skill qualifications. Fiona also attended some digital health and wellbeing workshops which she said helped her feel more confident and less anxious about both interviews and social situations. Fiona has attended face-to-face workshops in the office almost every week – she took part in interview skills, social-media, and hidden job market workshops which she said have all been very interesting and helpful. Fiona always participated well in workshops and felt she got some well-needed social interaction. Along with the workshops, Fiona also enjoyed her weekly appointments with her personal adviser and said she always felt that she could call at any time if she had a problem or a query. Her personal advisers have both commented on how Fiona has progressed throughout her time on programme, she has come out of her shell and is a lot more confident than she was when she first joined the Fair Start Scotland service.
What’s next?
Fiona has achieved a lot during her time on Fair Start – as well as improving her interview skills, social skills, computer skills and qualifications, Fiona has now been successful in gaining part-time employment.
Fiona is working as a cleaner within the Gym Group in Irvine. She is working nightshifts and said she couldn’t be happier! She travels to work via the bus and is being provided with funding to cover her travel until she gets paid her first wage, which she’ll receive next week. Fiona said she can’t wait to get paid and plans to buy herself some new gym clothes.
Fiona is still in regular contact with Fair Start and receives a weekly in-work support call from her adviser, Holly, to check in and catch up with her. Fiona really appreciates the ongoing contact and often still attends some employer services workshops and events held by Fair Start Scotland when she is not working. Fiona advised she has not been this happy in years and couldn’t have achieved everything she has without the support she has received.
*not her real name