As a cleaner at a Pets at Home store, Bernie has truly found himself at the heart of a sparkling career journey. With the help from his job coach Eloise, he successfully landed the central role as a morning cleaner
“I met Eloise at the end of July, and we started off by filling out a Vocational Profile together, which I thought was really helpful. Eloise then came to see me once a week and we completed my CV and started looking for jobs and any additional courses based on what I was interested in”.
“Filling out a Vocational Profile is a fantastic opportunity for us at Thera to ensure we are working in a person-centred way”, mentioned Eloise. “It allows the people we support to help us as job coaches understand their interests, likes and dislikes, in addition to what support they may need within a workplace setting. We can then use this information as a guide to fully identify what employment may be ideal for them”.
Within three weeks, Bernie managed to successfully secure a part time cleaning position at a Pets at Home store. “I felt really happy to start my new role. I had been a cleaner for two years at a college before which stopped because of lockdown, so it felt good to get back on the ladder. I had a telephone interview which was fairly easy as I’ve had a few before, as well as training on interview techniques, so I was confident in how to answer the questions and didn’t need much guidance from Eloise there”.
It wasn’t long before his first day arrived – “I was quite excited. Eloise came to work with me on my first week, so that together we could learn what the tasks were that were expected of me. As my confidence grew quite quickly, she then made me a to do list that I can tick off every day which I found really easy to follow”.
“My favourite part about the job is being able to work in the mornings and being part of a good staff team that understand me and my needs. If I get stuck on things, my manager Karl is helpful in telling me what to do. I don’t like cleaning up after the animals though, even though some are cleaner than humans!”
Having seen Bernie’s confidence flourish in a small matter of time, I asked whether he could share any advice to others who would like to take their first steps into the world of work? “When you go for your interview, make sure you look professional and dress appropriately, even if it’s online!”
Great advice Bernie, you really have swept us away with your brushed up skills!
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