When the pandemic first forced the closure of schools in the Spring of 2020, Valentin Nuber was forced to give up his food production job to care for his nine year old son. Wrongly hoping that his time away from work would be short lived, Valentin was unemployed for nine months before the WHP JETS programme found him the perfect job. Valentin’s now back in work and able to manage childcare, while getting back on his feet financially.
 
“My partner works too but we simply couldn’t afford childcare costs as well as all the other day to day bills when the schools closed,” explains Valentin. “I had no idea the impact of the pandemic would go on so long and I got increasingly worried about our finances and the chances of me finding work alongside looking after our son.”
 
Valentin, who is 31, was referred to WHP JETS by Work Coach Anisa Matadar at Preston Jobcentre Plus for one to one support with his job search. The programme provides tailored employability support to people whose work has been affected by the pandemic.
 
Having explained his employment and childcare dilemma to Ingeus coaches Jooles Morrison and Farah Dad, they set about preparing Valentin to re-enter the world of work.
 
“It was so reassuring to have expert help,” recalls Valentin, who moved to the UK from Romania seven years ago. “My spoken English is strong, but I needed help with updating my CV and ensuring I came across well on paper too. We worked on my interview technique and job search and Ingeus found lots of roles for me to apply to. I was totally flexible in what to go for, as long as I could still support family life.”  
 
Valentin now works as an office cleaner, four days a week on a 2pm-8pm shift.
 
“With a little help from family, my partner and I can now both work and look after our son. I love being in work again, learning new skills, polishing my spoken English and meeting new people. I want to be a good role model to my son and with the help of the JETS programme he too is seeing the benefits of a working life.”
 
Ingeus, working in partnership with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), is delivering the Work and Health Programme (WHP) expansion for Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS). It is co-financed by the European Social Fund.
https://ingeus.com/jetsnw