Determined Chloe finds direction to earn a job she loves

“She is a lovely young lady; a very bright girl who just needed a little bit of pointing in the right direction. When I’ve been to visit Chloe at work she seems so happy and has clearly found a job she loves."    Nicky, Talent Coach.

Chloe was 18 when she self-referred onto GM’s Hidden Talent in August 2019. 

She had seen an advertisement on social media and needed some motivation and self-esteem. Chloe wanted to improve her confidence but was uncertain about what she wanted to do with her life and what her options where.   

Chloe was living with her parents in Hindley Green in Wigan at the time and had completed a child care qualification the previous year.  She had been actively looking for employment, but had felt a little lost and disheartened with not getting any replies from applications.

Chloe has gone from strength to strength
Chloe has gone from strength to strength

Soon after meeting with her Talent Coach, Amy (based at Groundwork Cheshire, Lancashire and Merseyside) she started the Prince's Trust Team programme (hosted by Groundwork). The Team Programme combines socialising group activities with work experience, a self-determined community project and employability skills.

Whist on the programme, Chloe completed a two-week work placement at B&M in Tyldesley. This progressed into a Christmas temp job for a further four weeks.  Chloe completed the Team Programme by attending class in the day and working in the evenings and at weekends.

After her temporary contract finished in January 2020, Amy signposted Chloe onto a traineeship based at South Leigh Community Nursery. Chloe worked at the nursery Monday to Thursday and studied her English and maths Functional Skills on a Friday.

 When the country went into the first national lockdown, the nursery closed but Chloe continued to complete the studying element of her traineeship online on a laptop loaned out by Groundwork.

Throughout lockdown, Chloe was supported by Nicky from Groundwork who had assumed the Talent Coach role. Nicky had worked on the Team programme and had an established relationship with Chloe.

Chloe returned to work in June on a part-time basis working two days a week. This was now paid employment which continued until September. At this point her role changed as she started an apprenticeship with Wigan & Leigh College (with the host employer still being South Leigh Community Nursery).

Reflecting on Chloe’s achievements, Nicky said: “As soon as Chloe started the Prince's Trust course, self-esteem grew very quickly.  Belonging to a group of young people with a similar goals and barriers enabled her to realise that she was not isolated.

“The new teamwork skills and fresh routines enabled her to change her mindset and adopt a willingness to do whatever it took to gain employment.

“She is a lovely young lady; a very bright girl who just needed a little bit of pointing in the right direction. When I’ve been to visit Chloe at work she seems so happy and has clearly found a job she loves. She is a very valued member of the team at South Leigh Community Nursery and her manager is over the moon with her.”
 

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