Kelly (GROW Trainee)
Can you tell me about your experiences of homelessness or service use?
I was homeless from the age of 15 to 17 after a breakdown of family relationships with my mum. I moved out into a young people’s hostel in Peterborough. I lived there for a total of 8 months. I was kicked out because of my bad behaviour. I then moved to Hope House Hostel and stayed there for a further 8 months until I met my partner who I’m with today.
How did you hear about the GROW traineeship?
Well, I saw it advertised in the paper and it’s always something I wanted to do since I’ve been homeless. I just saw the advert and it said they wanted people with an experience of homelessness, who had knowledge of drugs or alcohol issues. So I applied and got the job.
What were your biggest concerns or worries regarding employment?
That other members of staff wouldn’t accept me for being a service user and having been on the other side. I thought I was going to be like an outcast but it’s not been like that.
How did you find the recruitment process?
Really, really interesting, we had an interview day where I came in and cooked with the residents. It was a whole day assessment, 9am-5pm and we were involved in all sorts of scenarios. There was also a basic Maths and English assessment. I thought it was a great way to assess our skills.
How have staff responded to you?
Really well, especially my buddy Kelly who has been really good, she’s taught me so much. The staff have just accepted me as one of the them, they don’t look at me as a trainee, I’m just like everybody else to be honest. Everybody teaches me something. I’m invited to sit in on interviews, referrals and three way meetings, everybody just lets me experience what I want really.
How do residents respond to you and do they know about your past?
Yes, I’m quite open with the residents about my history and I think they respond better to me because they know I’ve been there. I’ve been in their situation, I’ve taken drugs, I know how hard it is. I know how lonely it is when you don’t have any support or family around you. I feel the residents respect me as a member of staff but they say I’m on their level.
Can you tell me about the different aspects of the programme?
We first started with two days intense training, the first day was at Peterborough Foyer where I used to live. The second day was at the head office with the Board of Governors and the head of Axiom. Staff went through the competency framework, boundaries and so forth. Then I met my tutor and we went through all the health and safety procedures, we did lots of different modules. We learnt about office etiquette, petty cash and how to interact with service users.
How long have you been on the programme for?
I’ve been here now just over four months and I love it to bits - it’s something that I want to continue doing and encourage other people to do the same.
What achievements are you proud of?
I think I’ve come really far, I mean in the last 4 months I think I’m a bit more ahead. I have been given one service user to keywork now. I have the responsibility to do that person’s support plan and keywork them. I think I’ve done everything really well. I feel I can do everything now where 2 months ago I was having to ask a lot of questions on how to do things but now I can just come in and do it myself.
What areas have you struggled with?
At first I was a little over confident, I wanted to basically run before I could walk. I wanted to come in and do everything straight away. I wanted to keywork immediately. I had to be told to slow down a little bit but now I’m comfortable and I feel everything is going along at the right pace.
How did you overcome this difficulty?
I overcame this with the help of my buddy; we looked at what I needed to achieve and figured out a time scale. We set out a system and my weeks were planned out with what I was going to do and by what time.
Is there anything GROW could do differently?
I don’t believe so - I think it’s really, really good and I think it’s brilliant that service users have the opportunity to work in hostels and other supportive roles.
What would you say you personally bring to the job?
I think I bring loads of enthusiasm and I have a good understanding of service users because I’ve been one before.
How has GROW changed your life?
It’s changed my life for the better, this has been a really good opportunity for me and I’m going to make a career of this rather than it just being a trainee for a year.
Do you think GROW is the way forward?
I think it is the way forward, as I say a lot of service users understand and can help others. I think it is definitely a positive thing to get more service users trained.
Why do you think other organisations should employ service users?
We can all change, we’re not always going to be how we were and people can change. Organisations need to see we’re not all bad and we can help change others.
Fernand (GROW trainee)
What are your experiences of homelessness or service use?
I became homeless because of a family breakdown and so I moved to Peterborough to be with my girlfriend but because of my laziness she kicked me out. From that point I became homeless until I managed to find a place up in Peterborough in Axiom’s New Haven Hostel.
How did you hear about the GROW traineeship?
It was mentioned to me by one of the members of staff, they asked me if it was something I would like to do in the future, I said ‘yes, I would love to do it’. About a year after I left the project I was contacted through an email saying there was a GROW traineeship opportunity and would I like to apply for it.
What were your biggest concerns or worries regarding employment?
I didn’t have any fears because the job post said it was specifically for people with an experience of homelessness.
How did you find the recruitment process?
It was good and enjoyable. I filled in the application form then I was offered an interview. All the applicants were people who had an experience of homelessness and we all mixed with the residents. After that we did a job interview and had a computer test and things like that.
How have other staff and residents responded to you?
The staff have responded to me as one of them, which was great to see. I was a bit concerned that as they had seen me as a resident they may not take my opinions into consideration.
The residents see me as staff and also as one of them. That is where I have to bring the boundaries into place and show them I am staff now.
Can you talk to me about the programme, the different aspects and the competency framework.
When we started we had two weeks induction training and we covered a lot of stuff. We were taught the history of Axiom, we did Health and Safety policies. We were given folders with the targets we were expected to hit. We were told after three months we would have a probation period that we needed to pass. For example I’m on my probation period now and I’m expected to hit my targets to pass. After my six month probation evaluation I will be swapping placements with Kelly at the New Haven project and she will come to mine.
My first day here I had to do the real thing, I started to meet new residents, all the staff and I met my buddy.
Joanne (Learning Facilitator)
Joanne can you tell me what the benefits of employing ex-service users are?
I think it’s better than just interviewing people off the street. The thing is if we get people that are ex-service users, we know their backgrounds. We know they have overcome some awful things in their life; people with past addictions, criminal records.
And you think this is a positive?
Yes, because we know who we’re employing and have monitored their progression for the years they have lived with us. At least we know where they have come from but we can’t say the same about random people applying from the papers or the Job Centre.
Can you give me an example of someone who would benefit from the GROW programme?
So if I use an example of a guy I’m working with at the moment who has quite a bad criminal record but it was many years ago and it was actually instigated through coming out of the army and having had pretty bad memories and being in a poor mental state. Working with him for the last 8 months I have seen him progress immensely from someone who was very depressed and wouldn’t leave his room to winning a fantastic national learning award and gaining 7 A-C grade GCSEs and showing fantastic support in the learning centre which is in the same building he lives in. Now he would be someone who would be fantastic for the GROW programme but a ‘normal employer’ wouldn’t touch him with a barge pole. So I think we are getting the heads up on those that are going to commit, those that are going to try, way before they even set foot in the door. I think that’s a far better place to be in than just interviewing people from a CV alone.
Faye (Project Manager and Kelly’s supervisor)
Did you have any worries or concerns before working with a trainee?
I think initially we were a little nervous about it, until the interview date and then we realised what high standard of applicants we had and it became a real tough decision. I think that boosted everyone’s attitude towards it and we could see we could actually get a good trainee, stopping all concerns.
As a supervisor, what has your experience been so far?
It’s been really good, really positive because Kelly is so enthusiastic, it’s a real pleasure to supervise someone who is so keen, she’s so open and honest about things and it’s nice to guide someone through what they are doing. It’s also great in the respect that you can teach someone from the ground up as they have no previous experience.
Do you feel you have been supported enough in your role?
Yes definitely, I think because at Axiom this is the first time we’ve taken on a GROW trainee, we’ve had a lot of support from the CEO and right down to my manager and the rest of the team.
Can you give the positives of working with a GROW trainee?
The main positive I have found is the fresh new ideas the trainees bring in. Kelly’s really keen to give anything a chance and a lot of stuff she does get off the ground. She is very enthusiastic and it does get the other staff to sit up and take notice. She brings a really good attitude to the team.
Are there any negatives or difficulties you have found since working with a trainee?
I think initially it was that the trainees are so keen that they perhaps try to run before they can walk. I think we have to be careful they don’t go in head first especially with the client group of vulnerable adults we have here. Obviously you can sometimes come across difficult situations and boundaries and stuff. You just have to keep that extra eye on someone who hasn’t had that experience. You just have to rein then in a little bit sometimes.
How has your trainee settled into the team?
Really, really well, she’s got her buddy, they work really well together so she just boosts the rest of the team. It’s helped the rest of the team to play a bit more of a senior role in the team and if they have any concerns they’ll come to me or they will say ‘oh I’ve had a word with Kelly’. So they have a bit of responsibility for her development too.
What do you feel you have gained from working with Kelly?
It’s given me the opportunity to really see things from a different perspective as Kelly has previously been a service user so she can say to me ‘well maybe that service user feels like this because of XYZ’ that we wouldn’t have thought of. So she does make you see things that bit differently.
Is there anything you would change about the traineeship?
No I don’t think so, the best bit for me was the interview process where we had the service users involved it was a whole day event. Rather than just a half an hour interview, we were able to assess their skills. We have now decided to do that for all project workers, not just trainees so that is fantastic, you know anyone can learn to answer a question with the correct answer. What we got in this process was feedback from service users and saw them practically on one to one work. The whole process has been really, really good I wouldn’t really change any of it.
What do you think benefits are for the trainees?
It gives them a chance that they wouldn’t have had before. Kelly will always tell you she jumped at the chance when she saw the advert. You know someone with a background of homelessness living in the project, people who have criminal records. You know issues from their past. So many employers won’t give them a chance so I think it’s a really, really good opportunity.
Do you think all the team support the trainees or have you experienced any resistance?
The team here really, really support Kelly, I’ve not had any resistance from here. Initially Kelly was overly keen and staff had concerns and told her to slow down, you’re here for a long time so you need to learn it day by day not going in all guns blazing. We have discussed that we have our head office and different departments and how it might be over there. Perhaps in a more office environment that’s where you might find a bit more resistance.
Do you find boundaries an issue?
Not at all, Kelly takes no messing she puts her foot down when she needs to, any issues and she addresses it straight away.
Through your experience, would supervising be something you would be interested in doing again?
Oh yes definitely, we take social care students we have Future Jobs Fund and Kelly our GROW trainee and I love supervising them, they bring something different to the team.
Has employing ex-service users changed your perception of service users and their potential?
It’s given us an insight on how people can progress, another girl in one of our projects is out there working, it’s great to see other organisations doing that. It definitely makes you look at service users and think ‘yeah, one day you could do that’. We also have a lot of service users even before we started with GROW saying to us ‘I’d really like to get into this work, I want to be a drug worker, I want to be a support worker’. Now there are beginning to be opportunities out there and we as staff can see that progressing.
What do you think your organisation gains from employing service users?
I think for Axiom it’s made them sit up and realise what we can do if you have a little faith in something. My boss, she was really keen on getting the traineeship started and it has made everybody sit up and realise, this is why we do this job and there is an outcome, it’s not just about getting someone a new flat, it’s about their long term goals. Kelly and Fernand, our two trainees, did a speech at our staff conference and everybody was just overwhelmed at how good they both were and how much effort they have put into their placements. I think it made staff sit up and realise what we can do for our service users’ futures.
Do you think it’s important for other homeless organisations to employ service users and for this to be normalised?
Yes definitely, and for organisations to do the process right and involve the service users from day one, like we did in the interview process. Kelly has started a football team and got sponsorships and has really got her teeth into it. I’d recommend it to anyone without a doubt.
