From April 2013 to March 2015, our Choices programme has been supported by HSBC under it’s Opportunity Partnership which saw four charities (St Giles Trust, The Prince’s Trust, Catch 22 and Tomorrow’s People) coming together to tackle youth unemployment. Thousands of young lives across the UK have been transformed under the Opportunity Partnership. Jamal* was one of them.
When we first met 20 year old Jamal, he was homeless and unemployed. Family problems meant he had been forced to leave home and was temporarily staying with friends.
Jamal had qualifications and potential and had studied business administration at college. But he lacked the support to guide him on a path where he could effectively use these assets. Fed up with being unemployed and desperate to find a job and support himself, he heard about St Giles Trust’s Choices project from a friend and turned to us for help.
Jamal met David from our Choices Team who set to work helping Jamal overcome any problems which were holding him back. David found Jamal a place in a hostel to stabilise his housing situation and enabled him to prepare for his job search through helping him create a CV and apply for jobs online. Once Jamal started to gain confidence, he became increasingly independent and was able to take this forward by himself, using the St Giles Trust office as a base to look for and apply for work. As Jamal was interested in working in security, David found funding to help Jamal undertake a SIA (Security Industry Authority) course and obtain the badge.
These efforts paid off when Jamal successfully found work with a security firm. He is currently working whilst studying part time at college to train as an electrician. Once qualified, his plan is to get three or four years experience under his belt before setting up his own business or going freelance.
Since coming into contact with us eight months ago, Jamal is now feeling a lot more confident about his future. David – who Jamal describes as ‘a really nice guy’ – still keeps in close contact with him to offer support as and when he needs it.
*name changed