A helping hand for job seekers
Allenton Big Local funds a Job Club at the Allen Park Centre in Allenton, which is run by Derby Adult Learning Service and held every Monday between 9.30am and 4pm (except for Bank Holidays).
Since September 2016, the club has been run by Chris who is a fully, qualified Careers Advisor and part of the Careers@Derby team with many year’s experience of working with job seekers in community settings and job centres, as well as at the Careers@Derby Centre in Curzon Street.
At the Job Club, Chris provides job seekers from the Allenton and surrounding area with a range of support, including career focused Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG).
In the latest update to Allenton Big Local, Chris said: “My knowledge and experience of the barriers facing the unemployed – such as social mobility, confidence, motivation and finance – have enabled me to provide tailored careers advice and sign-posting on a case-by-case basis. The atmosphere within the Job Club is friendly and supportive and users are encouraged to help each other and share information such as job opportunities.”
The Job Club continues to grow with numbers averaging 11 per session, the majority of whom come from Allenton and the immediate surrounding areas.
New members are always welcome. If you are seeking employment, need help with your CV or would like support to improve your career prospects, feel free to call into the Job Club at the Allen Park Centre (next to Allenton Library) on Mondays between 9.30am and 4pm.
Case Study
T accessed the Job Club in May 2017 for additional support in looking for work after being referred by his Job Centre Plus Advisor. An IAG session was carried out, a CV was created, an email account was set up and the CV was linked to the Universal Job Match to enable T to start job searching. He was looking for practical work, preferably outdoors.
As part of the IAG session it was also identified that additional learning in numeracy would be beneficial and, as a result, T started an entry level numeracy course with Derby Adult Learning Services. However, despite considerable support from the tutor, T struggled to meet the requirements and was signposted to a non-exam course (Access Your Potential) but T did not take up this offer.
In September T started a Tree Surgeon course with Derby College and has hopes of gaining employment when the qualification is complete.
