Marcela Saavedra Keech, Operational Team Support Administrator and Communications Assistant. 9th February.
My time at Citizens Advice Reigate and Banstead (CARB) started in August 2021 under the Kickstart scheme. The Kickstart scheme offers a six-month work contract for young people aged 16 to 24 who are claiming Universal Credit.
I graduated from university in Summer 2020 but unfortunately graduated in the middle of the pandemic. The job market was a difficult place to navigate at the time – there were fewer employers hiring and increased competition amongst job seekers. So the Kickstart scheme was a fantastic opportunity for a young person like myself to build experience, improve my skill-set and increase my future my future employability. I was thrilled when I got offered the role of Operational Team Support Administrator and Communications Assistant.
On top of this, being hired by CARB meant my Kickstart job would be working for a charity, which is the sector I want to build my career in, so it was my ‘foot-in-the-door’ to the charity sector.
Right from the start of my time with CARB, ( and this includes even the interview stage!), I felt welcomed and supported by a friendly team. The CARB team has always been helpful and supportive, just as much during my training as well as throughout the whole 6 month period.
Training and development is something I value in a place of work and CARB certainly delivered on this. I have had access to plenty of training and whilst the training enabled me to do my work well it also included learning material that I will be able to use beyond my time here. Some areas of training that have benefited me now and will in the future include: following GDPR guidelines when handling client’s sensitive data, Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in the workplace and in offering services to the public and making social media accessible to everyone – including people with sensory impairments.
Ultimately, it has been great to work with such knowledgeable people who are truly experts in providing the support that clients need and who are all driven by the common desire to help and empower people. I can confidently say I have developed both professionally and personally during my six months at CARB and I am ending my time at CARB as a different person than the one who started. I feel far more confident when I apply for my next job in the charity sector and I am excited about what the future holds.