Jobseeker of the Week Success Story ‘Kirsten Rees’

Kirsten Rees started at The Lighthouse in October 2011. Kirsten had previously attended college and completed 3 ‘A’ Levels, 2 ‘AS’ Levels and an Advanced Welsh Baccalaureate, but had never had a job.

Aged 19, she had very little experience with regards to job applications and interviews and this was Kirsten’s main motivation for attending The Lighthouse. This became the priority, to support Kirsten by teaching her useful interview techniques and then further supporting her with mock interviews. As soon as Kirsten felt ready, she started attending weekly job search classes. She applied for various job vacancies, ranging from retail and cleaning to hospitality. She needed someone to give her a chance.

In November 2011, she started a 4 week work trial at Poundland in the Elli Centre in Llanelli and after proving herself to be a valued employee, was offered a job in January 2012.

The assistant manager at Poundland, Flera Varallo, commented on Kirsten’s new employment with them, saying:

“I interviewed Kirsten and I could see that she just wanted to be given a chance to prove herself. People tend to think working in retail, especially a pound shop, is easy but it’s not and Kirsten is a very hard worker. She fitted in immediately and is now a very valuable member of the team.”

During her time at The Lighthouse, Kirsten attended various activities to improve her employability, and the job search classes helped her to successfully gain the employment she wanted.

Her Job search Tutor, Rebecca Thomas said:

“Kirsten attended regularly and was always open minded about the vacancies, not only did she apply for various types of jobs but she never gave up, she kept applying and I’m really happy that it has paid off for her”.

If you would like help to find employment and need support and guidance from friendly staff, then please contact The Lighthouse on 01554 700351 or just call in to 14-16 Queen Victoria Road (old YWCA) and start your road to success.