Breakaway Supported Employment Service  

Client Stories

Peter

Peter (52) lived at home with his family and wanted the opportunity to work but it had been something his family did not believe was realistic or achievable.

He has been attending the same learning disability day centre (full time) for over 35 years. Through our visits to the day centre to work with his friends we got to know him.

Peter has limited communication skills and sometimes finds it difficult to make others understand his needs.

When he moved out of home into a shared house Peter was referred to Breakaway by his key worker.

We started by getting to know Peter better, we spoke to him and to his key worker and discovered that Peter needed to find a practical outdoor job which did not involve reading or writing or speaking to people.

We approached Grasstex, an outdoor maintenance company contracted to Mid-Sussex District Council. They had employed our candidates before and are very positive about supported employment.

Grasstex are able to be flexible about times, days, and tasks and were able to offer Peter four hours a week paid work, keeping the local park tidy.

Breakaway intensively job coached Peter for two months, breaking down the jobs into small parts so that he could understand the job, and eventually work without any support.

Peter had very limited road skills so we travel trained him so he could make a complicated 15-minute journey, crossing many roads, and get to work independently.

For Peter to have gained paid employment, to perform a work schedule and to travel independently and safely after many years of having very little responsibility is a remarkable achievement for both Peter and Breakaway.

We have continued to monitor Peter from a distance and he is doing very well. He enjoys his job, he loves the extra money and will be getting Sky TV installed in his home next month.

George

Years ago George was lucky to survive a vicious assault which left him in a coma. He slowly recovered but still suffers from an acquired brain injury which has robbed him of the ability to read and write. It also affected his sense of balance so his previous job as a steel erector was no longer suitable for him.

While he was very motivated to work, he had some hurdles to overcome and his recovery has been very gradual over the last eight years. He was initially found paid part-time employment with a grounds maintenance team. This eased him back into the routine and gave him a supported environment in which to work initially.

When he was made redundant in 2004 we started supporting him to look for other work, in quite specific vocational areas to suit his background. We made a speculative phone call last October to Mackley Construction near Henfield.

“George and I were invited along for an informal chat which turned into more of a formal interview. He was offered a three month trial and showed he was really keen to get started. We went into work with him to job-coach for the first few days. He picked up the job very quickly and has become a valued member of their staff who has been trained to drive road rollers and dumper trucks. This is a big achievement as George lost the ability to drive for many years. It turned out that Mackley’s knew George in his ‘bad old days’, so it’s to their great credit that they decided to give him the chance he needed to prove himself – and he has.