Financial Independence – Elaine’s story

When Elaine joined the Restart Scheme, she didn’t know how to develop her CV and wasn’t sure how to identify what kind of work she wanted to go into. She had a difficult situation at home due to a breakdown of a relationship in her family, which resulted in her becoming homeless.

When she met with her Restart Scheme Employment Adviser, Abbie, they discussed her previous experience and current situation. Together they created a plan of action to help her reach her goal of financial independence through sustainable employment.

Abbie told us: “Elaine felt she was held back without a CV, so this is something we prioritised in her first two weeks on the Restart Scheme. We also visited HSBC with her where Elaine was supported to open her own bank account.”

Once she had her new CV ready to go, Elaine attended several of our in-house training courses that focused on self-confidence, proactivity, resilience and practicing mock interviews. This gave her a huge boost in self-confidence and positively impacted her approach to her job search. Elaine continued her job search independently outside of her appointments with Abbie, and after placing a range of applications she was invited to an interview with a local restaurant. With her preparation already done, she performed well at the interview and was offered the job!

After just seven weeks on the Restart Scheme, Elaine had managed to find accommodation, open her own bank account, and land herself a job in hospitality.

Abbie shared: “Gaining this role in such a short period of time has increased Elaine’s confidence massively and she is loving her new job. The team and I wish her the best of luck in her new hospitality career.”