Meet Kelly: "I am so excited to be back working after so many years"

Kelly (far right) with some of the other graduates of the May 2021 Bath cohort

Kelly had not worked for 11 years and hoped the Women’s Work Lab could support her as she began her journey back into work.

She explains.”My son has additional needs, and in the past I have always had to drop what I was doing and pick him up from school. This had not been compatible with working.

"Both of my children are now more settled so I was looking to do something for myself and move my career forward. It felt very daunting though and difficult to know where to start! In the past I have worked in retail and hospitality and I wasn't keen on going back to these due to the hours and the job losses during Covid. I felt more at a disadvantage than ever before.

Life in Training

Kelly joined the May 2021 Bath programme, in partnership with B&NES Council which included 6 weeks of classroom based training, a 4 week work placement and being matched with a female mentor for 6 months at the end of the core programme.

“I had been away from the workplace for so long I just wanted support with finding what opportunities were out there but also an understanding of where I might be a good fit based on my own strengths and interests,” she explains.

Training sessions that were particularly useful to Kelly included Myers Briggs personality type testing, 1-2-1 career coaching and those on vision and making a plan for the future. As a natural extrovert, Kelly was particularly good with people and so she was matched with a placement at the Housing Association Curo Group, working as a support worker in Independent Living Services.

Life on Work Placement

Kelly joined the team for four weeks on home visits as well as doing wellbeing telephone calls from the office and team building days. Her time was spent either out on the road or at the head office at the Maltings.

“Everyone was incredibly supportive and welcoming and it was so fulfilling being able to get stuck in and do some of the work," she says.

"I quickly saw that I had plenty of transferable skills that would make me a good fit there long term. The Women’s Work Lab also helped me to put together my first CV for 11 years and work on my interview technique."

And the good news is Kelly has now been offered a part time role at Curo working as a Customer Service Advisor. She joins eight other Mums from this cohort of 14 back into work. "I could not be happier! I loved being in the office and the buzz of being part of the team."

The new role starts in October and she will continue to be supported by her Women's Work Lab mentor over the next six months as she navigates the world of work.

"If it wasn’t for the Women’s Work Lab there is no way I would be in this position. I have put ‘me’ on hold for so long and I really feel that with the support and training from the Women’s Work Lab I have found a career that I will love and I can really progress in.

"And that's not all - I have also really enjoyed meeting a group of like-minded women and we have become such a support for each other.

"The Women's Work Lab literally changes lives. I now feel confident that I will be a valuable addition to any workplace and that's not something I would have said 6 months ago."

Women’s Work Lab currently has places available on the November 2021 Cohort in Bath - apply here