Having volunteered at a toddler’s group in her local area for several months, Samantha was interested in becoming a Teaching Assistant (TA). She’d gained an NVQ Level 3 in supporting teaching and learning and had applied for lots of positions for TA roles but never seemed to get anywhere.
After reviewing Samantah’s applications, The Forward Trust identified a few areas that needed work when it came to her CV. This included rewriting elements of her CV, elaborating on skills and achievements, and reformatting her applications.
Samantha used her new CV to apply for several TA positions. Shortly after, she received the phone call she had been waiting for – an invitation to interview.
Having been out of work for a little while, Samantha was understandably nervous about the interview, so her employment advisors at Forward took steps to improve her confidence and ability to perform.
Samantha’s first interview didn’t end in a job, but she did gain excellent feedback, which motivated her to keep looking for jobs. At the same time, she thought it wise to broaden her options and started to apply for cleaning jobs, and was offered a job immediately after interview.
Samantha had only been in her new cleaning job for one week when she received two interviews for TA positions on the same day. Two interviews later, she found herself in an incredible position – she'd been offered both TA positions.
“I was delighted for her,” said Kirsty Langley, a Restart Scheme employment advisor at Forward.
“It really highlighted how much can be achieved in such a short time when you’re willing and motivated.”
On her success, Samantha said:
“Thank you to my employment advisors for being the best support. The staff at Forward have helped build my confidence and believed in me, even when I didn’t believe in myself. They helped in ways you wouldn’t even think, as well as with applications and interview prep. The team didn’t judge – they always listened and advised in a supporting manner.”
