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Job Share Day – A wonderful opportunity!
Employers across Northern Ireland and Europe opened their workplaces to people with disabilities as part of Job Share Day on Thursday 16 May. We were delighted that so many Action Mental Health clients were participating in the initiative, in a variety of roles and organisations across the country!
Our ESF “Working it Out” projects provides a comprehensive programme of specialist training in Personal Development, Vocational Skills and Employability, with the aim of helping our clients access employment or further education. The Job Shadow Day is co-ordinated by the Northern Ireland Union of Supported Employment and is supported by its members. Job Shadow Day is perfect for our clients as it can provide the perfect opportunity to get firsthand experience of the world of work and to discover and learn about the skills required to compete and succeed in the workplace.
One of own job seekers – Ciara McCormack – had the opportunity to shadow our Chief Executive, David Babington, as he went about his daily duties. The day kicked off meeting representatives from two Colombian cities with other community organisations and Belfast City Council. The visit is part of an 18 month exchange programme for sustainable urban development. Next it was on to Queen’s University Belfast for the headline event in a week packed with initiatives to celebrate Mental Health Awareness Week in partnership with AMH. David was on a panel of special guests including familiar faces GAA star Oisin McConville, Cool FM’s Paulo Ross and our own AMH everyBODY’s Deborah McCreedy. The discussion was hosted by BBC’s Tara Mills, Ciara got the opportunity to chat with all the guests and discover what the AMH Fundraising & Communications team get up to behind the scenes.
The panel Q & A
Behind the scenes
Ciara joins Tara Mills BBC and some of Team AMH
Here’s what some of our other clients got up to!
Gary Legge (AMH New Horizons North Down & Ards) is a budding DJ and got the opportunity to shadow Downtown Radio’s DJs – Big T and Neal McClelland – at their studios in Newtownards. What a wonderful opportunity – many thanks Downtown Radio!
Matt Sterrett (AMH New Horizons North Down & Ards) got an insight into working in the NI Civil Service by shadowing Gary Bennett, Head of Central Support & Coordination Team at the Department of Education in Rathgael House, Bangor. Thank you NICS!Job Shadow Day with ESS (Electronic & Security Services) L-R : B Lemon (AMH New Horizons Derriaghy), D McCullough (Director ESS), P Allen (Senior Engineer ESS) and T McEwan (Director ESS). Many thanks ESS!Joe Cruickshank from AMH New Horizons Foyle, was working at the Guildhall with Derry City & Strabane Council. He was shadowing Customer Services, dealing with customer enquiries and setting up rooms booked for public events, including a wedding – and the chamber for a councillors meeting. Joe said he thoroughly enjoyed the experience! Many thanks Derry City & Strabane Council.Daniel Graham from AMH New Horizons Fermanagh, was job-shadowing as a kitchen porter in Granny Annie’s, Enniskillen. This is the first step towards Daniel obtaining paid employment in the hospitality industry. Well done Daniel and thank you Granny Annie’s!
Helena McCartney (AMH New Horizons Fermanagh) was job shadowing as a Salon Technician at Studio 37 in Enniskillen. Helena completed her Level 2 in Beauty last year! Many thanks to Caroline & Yvonne – co-owners of the salon.Lewis McElroy (AMH New Horizons Fermanagh) was working at Waterways Ireland, job shadowing in several Business Admin roles including HR, Marketing and Property & Finance. Lewis was keen to gain a better understanding of what direction he would like to go as he considers applying for a Level 3 qualifiation in Business Administration. Well done Lewis! Many thanks to Waterways IrelandEmma (AMH Promote) had a work placement yesterday at NI Civil Service, Rathgael House. We’d like to say a huge thank you to James, Luke, Tricia and Julie from Rathgael House for providing great training and support for Emma. She had a fantastic day!Ryan McConville and Alastair Neill from AMH Downpatrick got the opportunity to experience real life retail with B&M Bargains, under the helpful eye of store manager Allan Lang.Christopher Milligan enjoyed his day with Trackars Healthcare Downpatrick, helping out with administration duties as part of Job Shadow Day 2019. Christopher was shown the ropes by general manager Niamh Conaty and Ann Marie Quinn assistant co-ordinator.Jac Grogan of New Horizons Belfast met Northern Ireland Prison Service Director General, Ronnie Armour, who briefed him on aspects of Reducing Offending, before spending time at Hydebank Wood College.Jac also got an insight into the role of Maria Watson, Head of Continuous Improvement with the Northern Ireland Prison Service.
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