Support helps Ukrainians into work in Warwickshire

“I was met by a wonderful lady and listened to the entire course of lectures and things became a lot clearer."

The Ukrainian Working in Warwickshire Programme was designed by the Warwickshire Skills Hub team to help Ukrainians to experience career opportunities open to them in Warwickshire.

Its objective is to provide direct access to jobs which local employers have shaped in conjunction with the Skills Hub's Fair Chance Employment Programme, which has proven to be an effective way to build inclusive jobs locally and boost engagement between Ukrainian jobseekers and employers who are tackling significant skills shortages.

Working in delivery partnership with CWCDA and the Warwickshire Community Skills Hubs (based in Warwickshire Libraries), the collaboration offers Ukrainian residents the opportunity to easily access employment workshops such as A Guide to Employment In The UK, CVs and Applications and Interview Techniques as well as English speaking classes.

Over 100 Ukrainians signed up to the programme with over 50 having now built CVs and working with the team to search and apply for jobs with much improved English skills from ESOL lessons. The UWWP employment sessions have been running at Warwickshire Community Skills Hubs in Rugby, Atherstone and Leamington.

Many supported by the programme have offered such positive feedback, including Nataliia, who has secured employment in a school.

Nataliia came to the UK with her six-year-old child under the Homes for Ukraine Scheme last June and lives with her sponsor. In Ukraine, she worked as a beautician in her sister’s business before moving to the UK where she worked as a seasonal fruit picker.

Nataliia was interested in working in the retail sector but her biggest barrier is language, so she attends weekly ESOL classes at her local community centre. She also needed a CV which she acquired after attending all the programme’s workshops; A guide to Employment in the UK, CVs & Applications and Interview Techniques.

The workshops gave Nataliia the tools to search and apply for jobs and a better understanding of UK employers’ expectations, interview techniques and information about starting a job and paying contributions. A CV and cover letter were created and uploaded to Indeed to enable her to start job searching.

Nataliia applied to become a cleaner in her local school and after an interview (using google translate) was offered the job. She is enjoying her new job which fits around her family life.

“I am very grateful to Leah and the programme,” she said. “I came from Ukraine and for a long time could not find a job, and then my sponsors advised me about the programme. I came and did not regret it.

“I was met by a wonderful lady and listened to the entire course of lectures and things became a lot clearer. Leah helped me put together the right resume and helped me fill out the documents. Now I have a job and I am very happy that I went on the scheme.”

Warwickshire County Council’s Strategic Director of Communities, Mark Ryder, said: “I am delighted that Nataliia has benefited from the scheme and found a job in which she is happy. The challenges that Nataliia, and everyone who has had to leave their homeland are facing, are hard for us to comprehend so I am proud that Warwickshire, as a county, has reacted in such a warm and welcoming way and that the Ukrainian Working in Warwickshire Programme has proved so effective.”