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Keep up to date with our latest news, success stories and updates. 

Keanu's New Role with NHM Maintenance

4/28/2025

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We’re really excited to share that Keanu, with support from his WorkAid Job Coach Sarah, has recently started a paid role with NHM Maintenance!

Keanu has joined the team as an NHM Support Assistant, where he’s helping out with stock organisation, facilities management, and preparing materials for the team. He’s settled in really well after just a month, and we’re so proud of everything he’s achieved already.

Congratulations Keanu! We can’t wait to see what’s next for you.
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Our Partnership with Nando’s

3/31/2025

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We're really proud of the impact our WorkAid service is having. By helping adults with learning disabilities and autism find paid employment, we're changing lives! One of our latest partnerships, with Nando's, has led to 14 individuals securing jobs across five of its locations in Sussex. This brings the total number of people we've supported into work to over 1,600.

We first teamed up with Nando's when its Bognor Regis restaurant opened last year. Dan Massey, General Manager at Nando's Bognor Regis – Arun Retail Park, shared, "We're always looking at ways to attract and develop the best talent in our restaurants. The Nandocas [team members] we have welcomed via the Aldingbourne Trust have been fantastic additions to our team. They bring enthusiasm, dedication, and energy, and that's exactly what we need to continue delivering the great food and service we're known for."

At WorkAid, we take the time to understand what employers need and match them with individuals whose skills and interests align. We support businesses through the entire hiring process—from interviews and onboarding to workplace adjustments—so that both employers and employees feel supported every step of the way.

For those joining Nando's, the experience has been life-changing. Ieva, one of the new recruits, shared, "I have so much more confidence and am able to interact with people in a way I never thought I could," she said. "Since my discovery day, I have felt like I am truly understood and accepted as a woman with autism. I love the financial independence that this job brings, and meeting new people every day is a huge bonus."

Katie Williams, our Community Partnership Lead, hopes this success will inspire other businesses to get involved, "If Nando's can do it, places like Tesco and Sainsbury's can do it. We have people working in huge businesses, but we haven't found that major link in terms of supported employment yet. My job is to develop these leads, and I hope relationships can flourish just like Nando's."

This partnership is proof that inclusive employment benefits everyone: businesses gain committed employees, individuals achieve greater independence, and communities become more inclusive.

To learn more about WorkAid and how your business can get involved, visit: www.aldingbournetrust.org 

​Written by Lizzie Senn. ​For any media inquiries, please get in touch with [email protected]
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Ian's Story

3/15/2023

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Ian was referred to WorkAid in November 21, and his Employment Consultant (EC) started working with him in January 22. Ian, who has a learning disability, lives in supported living accommodation. His ambition was to find paid work in a retail environment. He was especially keen to work in a supermarket, as this is what his late mother had done.

Once Ian’s EC got to know him, they identified the areas where he would need support and recognised that he would benefit from the work trial programme that WorkAid had set up in partnership with Waitrose/John Lewis. Ian joined the programme, which turned out to be a huge success. Ian was disappointed when it came to an end as he had enjoyed his time there, building new skills and making new friends, and gaining confidence and independence.

Unfortunately, there were no vacancies at that time, but Ian was happy to wait as he was determined to work there. A vacancy soon appeared, and his patience paid off as Ian applied and secured a fixed-term contract with the support of his EC. He made his intentions clear that he would like the role to be permanent, and a colleague mentioned this to the manager.

As a result of this conversation, Ian is thrilled to have a permanent part-time position. He now works on the click-and-collect counter and assists the customers with their orders. When his EC recently went to see him, the feedback from the managers and his co-workers was incredibly positive. It is evident that not only is Ian happy, but he has made a positive impact on the whole team as well. They could not speak more highly of Ian; he is doing an excellent job.
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Well done, Ian!
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AW's Story

10/7/2022

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AW’s support with WorkAid commenced in April 2022. He had a formal diagnosis of Autism, learning disability and mental health, and was referred to WorkAid by his parent.

Employment history:
AW was struggling to find employment and his caring responsibilities had hindered him working in the past. He has supported his family in caring for his sister in the family home. She had suffered extensive brain damage in a car accident and, since then, AW has suffered from PTSD. During this time, however, AW had volunteered at SOLD in Shoreham.
Summary from our initial meeting found: AW was hoping to find security work. He has a door supervisor card and security (including CCTV) certificate, but no work experience in this field. These qualifications run out in October 2022, but updating them will need funding. He describes himself as ‘pro-active’.

Facts:
AW is on UC and PIP – his PIP is for both mobility and care.
AW’s mum is his appointed person in all financial matters.

Identified Barriers:
AW has a poor sleep routine and frequently does not go to bed till around 1am. He struggles with forms and managing his finances. AW needs clear and concise instructions, and prefers achievable goals. AW is literal in his processing and struggles with understanding social cues or expectations being placed upon him. AW reports that becoming overwhelmed is his biggest barrier.

Actions taken in sessions:
Early sessions concentrated on AW’s CV, updating this with a photo and a personalised profile that best suited him in all future applications. Also, he was signposted to Matrix SCM for help preparing for interviews.

AW was keen to try out his new CV and began applying for security work after setting up an Indeed job search account, with the help of his Employment Consultant. He got an immediate response and was offered an informal interview with a local security firm.

AW requested interview support, and an Employment consultant accompanied him when he met with the employer. A work trial was offered and completed. The employer gave feedback directly to the EC and, although there had been issues with AW’s hygiene and presentation, the employer agreed to offer him paid work on a zero hour contract.

AW began paid employment in May 2022 and remains employed to this day. In September 2022, his EC secured funding via DWP for AW to update his door supervisors security licence. His upskill training will take place in October 2022.
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GP's Story

10/7/2022

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GP lives at home with his mother who has visual impairment and does not work. He has a learning disability and cannot read or write well. He can read a simple shopping list and find TV programme times in a TV magazine.

Neither he nor his mother have a computer or smart phone. They do not have the internet and have no email address.

GP was living in his own flat and working for many years as a gardener and maintenance person for a housing association. He always worked with a more senior partner. His situation changed around the start of Covid and he moved back to his mother’s home and left the job. Since then, he has not worked.

GP’s Employment Consultant supported him to get self-employed part-time work as a gardener. This was for two hours per week but could be less than this because if it was wet or his employers were away, he would lose those hours. The hope was that he would be able to take on more clients. From this experience it became clear, however, that if GP took on more clients, he would need a lot of support with the administration side of the work. GP and his EC realised that it would be much better for him to have a regular job where his employer could manage much of the administration.

GP’s EC helped him look for work, supporting him to apply for possible jobs and then two interviews at which he was unsuccessful.

In view of the barriers to employment for GP and his willingness to work, his EC suggested that he apply for support from a DWP funded programme called Intensive Personalised Employment Support (IPES). This was all going forward, but then it came to light that his (less than) two hours a week gardening disqualified him from being considered. The EC appealed this decision, to no avail.

A full-time job as a domestic refuse collector came up and GP’s EC helped him to apply. He was accepted and his EC supported GP get to his induction, travelling with him on the bus there and back. (GP was not confident to go alone the first time but is now confident where to get on and off the bus.) Once at the induction, GP’s EC helped him to read and sign the many documents, ensuring that he understood them all. There was also a short test. The EC read out the questions and multiple-choice answers and ticked the responses GP had given.

There are still some hurdles to cross. To register to get paid, an app is used. It has been agreed that GP’s brother will download the app on his behalf and manage that side of things, including entering his bank details so he can be paid. GP is also supposed to ‘clock in ‘ every working day with the app. GP’s EC is attempting to get the employer to make a reasonable adjustment so that GP can ‘clock in ‘ using another system. After the induction on 8th September, GP would have been able to start the next day, but must wait for them to order some large size boots.

GP and his family are very grateful for the support the EC has given. They have informed the EC they do not feel that GP would have been able to secure this work without his help
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Meet Lewis, supported by Impact Workability

3/4/2022

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​Meet Lewis, who is currently being supported by Impact Workability. Lewis has an Acquired Brain Injury following a stroke which he had at the age of 15, and he’s just about to turn 22. 

Lewis is one of many people who are receiving help from Supported Employment West Sussex to find work. He is determined to work in the healthcare sector, and despite being moved a year back at school to restudy work missed in year ten, he worked hard and achieved good qualifications, which gained him a place at University to study Occupational Therapy. Whilst there he gained lots of experience, however due to the Covid 19 pandemic he had to make the difficult decision leave the course. Since then, Lewis has continued to apply for work with the healthcare sector and has applied to volunteer at a local hospital to further his experience alongside his job searching.

Lewis’ determination is an inspiration to us and he has so much to give to his next team and patients- could Lewis be your next team member? 
 
Here he is sharing more about his story and experiences as part of Impact Initiatives 2021 conference.
 
For more information about Lewis’ skills, and to find out more about how Supported Employment West Sussex can support your recruitment please contact Sarah on [email protected]
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Dream Job Feedback

10/4/2021

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This week, one of our supported employment clients, has been offered a dream role within Chichester Festival Theatre- a huge congratulations to R after a lot of patience and never giving up! 
 
“How can I begin to thank you for all you have done for R, through Work Aid, over the past few years?! You have been so amazing and have never given up on him. 
 
Your kindness, perseverance, patience and enthusiasm has been exceptional and has finally paid off with R now being offered his first proper job at the age of 31! The fact that this job has been designed to suit his specific needs is even more wonderful as it will help him to adapt and settle in.
 
The door into paid work has finally been opened after so many years of trying. This door also opens up a new world of opportunities that will give R a sense of self worth and purpose. He will meet new people, broaden his horizons and use his talents to the full.
 
THANK YOU so very much.” Parent of R, supported by WorkAid
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Successful talent management with the Aldingbourne Trust

4/29/2021

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At RAS, we believe that successful talent management starts with the right recruitment and selection. 

We recently received a letter from the Aldingbourne Trust in relation to the recruitment experience of one of our newest colleagues and their appreciation of one of our Recruitment Advisors…

“My name is Debbie Mott, I work for the Aldingbourne Trust, in the WorkAid team, our head office is based at our Country Centre site in Fontwell, near Chichester, West Sussex. 

I work with a team of employment consultants who are based throughout various locations in West Sussex. We specifically work with adults who are anywhere on the spectrum of learning disabilities and autism. In my work I offer holistic and personalised support to adults looking to gain fulfilling and sustainable paid employment. 

Our client’s come from a variety of employment backgrounds, from those who may be looking for their first paid job right through to those finding the next steps in their careers, but they are all very keen and determined to succeed in all they set out to achieve; they are just looking for the chance to fulfil their career goals and aspirations.

K’s story

K came to Work Aid in early 2020 after finishing his full-time education in a catering training establishment after which K had been looking for work for several months. K used our support to access a volunteer opportunity within a local charity shop where he was able to build on his existing transferable skills as well as gaining many new skills, including raising his own confidence within a workplace.
 
Determined to keep looking for appropriate paid work and seeing how COVID-19 was having a large impact of the hospitality industry, he set out to look for new opportunities.
Together we came across a position advertised by Retail & Asset Solutions (RAS) who were  for retail stocktakers.

K applied for the job and submitted his CV. He was very open and honest about his lifelong disability, which K has always been keen to do.

K heard back early on in his application to say that he had been successful so far and was offered an online interview with Simone White-Yule. He was nervous, though keen to make a good impression. A couple of days later the online interview took place, and I supported K to make a request around reasonable adjustments, which prompted Simone to call following the interview.
In this call I learned that Simone understood autism and with this was therefore able to appreciate  some of the assets that people with autism can bring to a workplace, qualities that many organisations consider valuable, such as high levels of enthusiasm, areas of expertise, reliability with added attention to detail and a sought-after ability to work in a consistent environment. Simone was able to set aside the standard expectations placed upon an application, such as one having an extensive working history. We openly discussed possible concerns, about how K would cope in some situations such as with his understanding of routine and assignment commitments, and together we were able to talk these through and find solutions.

Simone was keen to see if she could advocate on K’s behalf to consider offering him the role. With her tenacity, understanding and the desire to also see K succeed, she was able to be the key link to  K securing employment.

K was soon offered a job start! K himself was ecstatic as he had also appreciated how Simone had presented him with the honesty and integrity his application deserved. Simone had not just managed to secure K paid employment, but had renewed K’s faith in the process of application where a disability is disclosed. A true acknowledgement that when reasonable adjustments are put into place at the very start of the application process, how a pool of talent can be accessed without unnecessary assumption, stereotyping, bias, and discrimination.
Many people with a disability will suspect being honest and open about disability can disadvantage them in applying for jobs, and because of this, many often choose not to disclose their disability.

Three in five UK employees have experienced disability bias (hrmagazine.co.uk) and there still appears still to be many myths surrounding disability in that it may cost employers additional monies and that a disability means ill health, especially where the disability is often ‘unseen’.
Throughout K’s application RAS demonstrated that they clearly have diversity, inclusion, and employee engagement strategies at the forefront of their work with practice policies that are set out to remove any unfair discrimination. Simone certainly approached K’s application in a way which has contributed to an open and inclusive workplace culture, especially when making reasonable adjustments in the selection process. 

RAS are championing positive action to address a current under-representation among disabled people in the workforce, and in doing so are building a culture where every candidate is valued and it is true that a corporate image and reputation can be enhanced when working in an inclusive way.

Keep up the wonderful work RAS! we certainly look forward to working with you again in the future!
​

Debbie Mott
Recruitment Consultant
Aldingbourne Trust

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Supported Employment West Sussex March Newsletter 2021

3/30/2021

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My Employment Consultant helped me achieve what I thought was impossible!

3/1/2021

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"After years of struggling with anxiety and depression which dictated my life in every way imaginable, I have found I started to progress when I joined the gym in July 2018. The process of changes in my life started to develop. I started seeing my employment consultant in Spring 2019 and we discussed different possibilities of me moving forward with my life and what career I would look at participating in. My employment consultant found a Gym Instructor Course at a local College which led onto a Level 3 Personal Training Course, I felt with my employer consultant's support I was able to give this a try. We both visited the college as I was too nervous to go on my own, we both made it clear that initially I would need some extra support at least. I started my course and flourished very quickly, I passed the course and then started and completed the Level 3 Course. I am now a qualified Personal Trainer starting my own business. If it wasn’t the help and support of my employment consultant at the start, I wouldn’t of made that first course. She was kind, patient but most importantly she believed me and I will be forever great full for the support she gave me.''
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