Anna’s story

Following tailored support, Anna found a part-time receptionist role that suits her needs.

Anna, a 52-year-old resident of Swansea, had spent years doing temporary admin work. Last year she had to leave her job following a mental health breakdown.

She took time out to focus on her wellbeing and later connected with her GP. She started therapy and joined a six-week wellbeing course at a local centre in Swansea.

Getting back on track with support

Anna was referred to Working Wales after attending an event for people over 50. There, she met Aaron, an employability coach.

She said, “We spoke at the event in the job centre, and I later had a video appointment with Aaron to talk about what I needed to do to get back into work.”

Aaron helped Anna update her CV and prepare for interviews.

Anna said, “He gave me advice on answering questions when I’m under pressure and how to cope with answering them and getting through the interview.

“Aaron signed me up for newsletters with job listings so that I could look at those and try to find something that would be suitable for me to go back to work.”

Anna also received support from an employment mentor with the Communities for Work programme funded by Swansea Council.

She joined Cyfle Cymru, a peer mentoring service that supports people in recovery from mental health issues. As a result, Anna felt ready to return to work step by step.

Thanks to the holistic support she received, Anna was then referred to a role at a local GP surgery. She said, “I started training there a few weeks ago. I’ll officially begin my part-time receptionist role in May. It’s just 9.5 hours a week, so it’s not too much for me.”

Finding her confidence again

Anna said, “I’m feeling more confident again. I’ve been doing the training for two weeks and I have two more weeks of that so when I start properly, I will feel even more confident.”

Anna wants others to know they don’t have to face things alone: “There is help out there. You just need to look for it.

“My advisers were very supportive. They understood my circumstances and never pushed me to do something before I was ready. I just took my time and went through each video call one by one until I was ready to take the next step.”

Being able to attend appointments from home also made a big difference for Anna.

“They didn’t put me under pressure to go into the office for an appointment. I could do it all at home and that was really good for me.”

If you would like to explore your interests and opportunities with a careers adviser or employability coach, please contact us today.

Explore