Rehana was referred to GRoW from her local Jobcentre after losing her job when her mini-cab employer closed down. With a young child and no support network she is keen to find work in a school so she can work during term time.
Rehana said “Before I had my job as a Receptionist at a cab firm I used to do voluntary work, helping people from Afghanistan to adjust to life in the UK, and helping them with English language and making food for them. I also used to do training to help people from the UK who were going out to Afghanistan to volunteer, helping them to understand the Afghan culture to support them in their work. I really enjoyed helping people and realise this is a skill of mine.
When I lost my job I wasn’t really sure what I wanted to do next but when my Jobcentre referred me to GRoW, and I met the team, I started to think about working in a school. It offers the right type of hours for me as I have a 5 year old son but I don’t have any local support networks and so working in term time and being able to drop him off and pick him up myself is really important to me.
The GRoW Team have offered me lots of help. Sonia and Khatera in particular have helped me so much, inviting me to events such as the Coffee Morning and the CV Workshop. Sonia has worked with me on a new CV which I have to say is really wonderful. It makes me feel so much more confident now that when I apply for a job that I will get noticed. She has also invited me to do a mock interview which will help me understand about body language and help me understand the types of questions I am likely to be asked at an interview. I am actively looking for volunteering opportunities in schools now to help me build my work experience in that area, in fact I spoke with my son’s school this morning and they have asked me to send them some information so I am hopeful this is something I will be able to start quite soon.
Being part of the GRoW programme has been a huge help to me and I want to take part in all of the different events and activities they offer. It has been so interesting learning about new things and meeting new people too. I feel very happy talking about what I want to achieve for the future and it has really helped improve my confidence knowing that I have people behind me supporting me every step of the way”.