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CASE STUDY: MARRIAM
Marriam first joined Aspire’s Recruitment Pathway in November 2020 as a resettling refugee to participate in our work-based ESOL and employment support course - working to develop professional language and communication skills with a view to finding employment in the Customer Service sector.
On completion of her course, Marriam was one of the first participants on our two-week work experience placement programme with The Midcounties Co-operative. She has since developed the self-confidence to seek and apply independently for work, and has recently secured a position with Marks and Spencer.
Quote from Marriam: “This opportunity has been so good for me - I really enjoyed it, have learnt lots and built my confidence. I was able to talk to
people and learnt so many things about customer service - including patience and asking my team for help when I need it. So many people have encouraged me, and it feels really nice when people tell you that you can do it! This placement has been so helpful for learning new things - including what working in the UK is like - and it was really good fun!”
“Taking the
‘Thinking of Starting a Business?’ Course with Aspire was a great icebreaker for me to get back into being self-employed again. I learnt new skills and brushed up on some existing ones. The course helped me work through my business ideas, and I met other self-employed people which opened new doors.”
SEAN, ‘ENTERPRISE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAMME’ CLIENT
Our ‘Enterprise Development Programme’ is also collaborating
with The Midcounties Co-operative
to launch a self-employment social enterprise hub at the site of the Templars Square Cowley food store in autumn 2021. The new hub will provide a flexible, accessible and welcoming space to engage local people
seeking employment development, self-employment and enterprise development support. The hub will offer facilitated workshops, 1:1 and peer group sessions and signposting to other services, with bookable laptops and free space for 1:1 meetings.
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