Tony goes from receiving, to giving help . . .
Published 17/07/2008
Good News Story – Tony Nichol
Tony had been referred to Newcastle Futures from an Early Learning event, which had been held within the community.
Sylvia, the caseload consultant from Newcastle Futures who covers the East End of Newcastle, (one of 15 based throughout Newcastle), met with Tony to learn more about his situation and his needs, and found that Tony had an extensive work history with references, however due to a recent major operation, he was unable to continue to work within the environment he had been trained in.
Tony hated the fact the he was out of work, saying to Sylvia “being on benefits is like being on a life support system and you’re waiting to be switched off”. Tony wanted to get back to work to enhance his family’s opportunities, have holidays again, and not to worry about bills and the pressure of living on benefits.
Sylvia worked really closely with Tony, spending time to discuss options and explore his goals. Although Tony had experience within the Warehousing and Wholesale sector, having his NVQ Level 2, he needed to change his career, as he was unable to do heavy physical work. Tony had always enjoyed administration and IT work, and Sylvia did various 1-2-1 Jobsearch for Tony.
One of the vacancies Tony had went for was as a Community Connector working within the community across Newcastle promoting support and services available to other people. These services were to offer and support residents of Newcastle who were keen to move into education, training and employment, but were unsure where to go, what to do or whether they were able to go. This sounded right up Tony’s street.
Tony was thrilled to be successful with this position and this really lifted his mood and spirits. Like many people it was very hard to think of the transition of benefits to wage, however Sylvia at Newcastle Futures, due to Neighbourhood Renewal Fund, was able to support Tony with utilities costs and work clothing, all of which was added support and reassurance for Tony to make the final leap.
Tony has been working as a Community Connector since January 08, and thoroughly loves it. He continues to meet with Newcastle Futures, both on a personal level and professional level. Tony’s role is to meet with people who don’t necessarily access community services, and signpost onto the key partners across the city (Learning Links, Call Centre Professional, JET, Building Futures East, Shop for Jobs, Northern Learning Trust and Newcastle Futures). Tony loves the satisfaction of helping others and will never forget the support and guidance received by Sylvia at Newcastle Futures.
As we know, finding a job isn’t necessarily the end of the story; it can be just the beginning. Sylvia will continue working with Tony and support him in the workplace, to address any issues he may have along his journey – another excellent resource that Newcastle Futures are able to offer.
Newcastle Futures – a different approach to finding a job.