12 Oct WLA Work and Health Programme – a case study
The WLA’s innovative Work and Health Programme is transforming the lives of West London residents through highly personalised, sustained employment support. We love sharing stories of these transformations with you, if you have any comments or would like to find out more about the programme, please visit the programme page or contact us directly.
‘T’ joined the West London Alliance (WLA) Work and Health programme (WHP) in September, 2019 after a referral was made by Harrow Job Centre Plus. It was clear from the first appointment that he was further away from the labour market than other participants and there were significant barriers that had to be overcome. He had been diagnosed with ADHD and Autism and suffered with Depression and Anxiety for which he was taking anti-depressant medication. ‘T’ was vulnerable in other ways, as he had a poor relationship with his family and he had also recently spent a period of time sleeping rough, as he put it, “…living in the woods..”
‘T’ had no Right to work documents, so very early on in his appointments with his support manager, an application was made for a copy of his birth certificate, which he was glad to receive. Work was also done in improving the layout and content of his CV. During sessions it was discussed about the type of work that ‘T’ would like to do. He indicated retail work because he enjoyed interacting with customers. The focus moved to intensive job searches in January 2020 when ‘T’ was notified by his landlord that the property where he lived was to be sold and ‘T’ was given 28 days, the legal minimum notice, to quit the property. ‘T’ contacted his support manager in a distressed state. He had no savings to put a deposit on a new private flat. His Anxiety and Depression were aggravated, and he felt that he could not turn to anyone in his family for help.
‘T’ was assured by his support manager that WLA WHP would be able to help him. He was referred to one of our Specialist Providers, Shelter, and they contacted him very quickly. Soon, and with the help of Shelter, ‘T’ had found temporary accommodation in the Borough of Harrow, near to the Town Centre. His tenancy there was not under threat while he was deemed vulnerable enough to need help from Shelter. This reduced his Anxiety and Depression and he was able to take up his job searching again.
His support manager kept in close contact with him as the Covid-19 pandemic developed. ‘T’ showed his desire to work, despite the risks. He had applied for a job as a Medical Assistant at his local GP surgery. The job was via a private Medical staffing company, Orbis Medics. ‘T’ was offered a telephone interview, so his advisor had prepared him intensively and advised on how to research the company to have facts on hand for the interview.
At the end of March 2020, ‘T’ found out that he had been successful in the interview with Orbis Medics. ‘T’ is still working for Orbis and is now financially independent.