Overcoming Barriers: Courtney's Story

Our Building Futures programme provides employability support for those aged 19 – 24 in South Yorkshire, along with key digital qualifications.

Each learner receives individualised, tailored support to help them achieve their goal and move closer to their dream job. Working with their own mentor and keyworker, they have access to tailored packages of support to help build their future.

One learner who recently completed the programme was Courtney.

Courtney's Story

Courtney was referred to our Building Futures programme in South Yorkshire from her local Job Centre.

She was keen to secure full time employment, but suffers with selective mutism, an anxiety disorder which prevents her from being able to speak in certain social situations, and even to her friends and family members.

In order to complete the initial enrolment process with us, she needed the assistance of her Grandad, as she was unable to communicate on her own.

However, our team were able to work around this and managed to put an action plan in place for her.

Keyworker Support

Kirsty Fields was assigned to Courtney as her keyworker as part of the Building Futures programme, and explains how she was able to work with and assist Courtney throughout the programme.

"Once Courtney was enrolled on the programme, she attended our sessions and joined in discussions using the chat function on Microsoft Teams, so she was always actively engaging with the content and her fellow learners.

"However, we wanted to try to build a rapport with her and see if we could overcome her mutism barrier.

"Courtney and I worked closely together and by the time it came to her review, she felt able to complete this with me in a breakout room and managed to speak a little.

"This was a huge achievement for Courtney, as she had previously relied on the chat function on Teams and the support of her Grandad speaking for her until this point."

Overcoming Barriers

Courtney enjoyed taking part in various sessions via Microsoft Teams throughout the programme, but struggled when it came to practical sessions such as the mock interview, to help learners prepare for this stage of finding work.

However, Kirsty was able to work with Courtney to find the best solution for her to be able to complete this, making her feel as comfortable and prepared as possible.

"After spending some time preparing with Courtney, she eventually felt confident enough to try to complete her mock interview with her tutor. Unfortunately, her anxiety was really high, which then brought forward the selective mutism.

"But thanks to the help of her Grandad and her tutor, we were able to find a solution for Courtney and she was soon able to complete her mock interview in a one-to-one situation with myself.

"Again, this was a massive achievement for Courtney. She is now looking into continuing with her education by applying for bootcamps to keep working on her confidence. Hopefully this will lead her into her chosen career."

Building Futures In South Yorkshire

If you’re looking to take your first step towards a digital career and live in South Yorkshire, then take a look at our Building Futures programme. You can gain key digital qualifications that will help lead you into further industry recognised qualifications with our select partners.

The Building Futures programme also provides tailored support and key employability training for all our learners.

For more information, please visit our Building Futures page

The B2W Group has a fresh approach to transforming businesses by up-skilling their current staff or bringing an apprentice into the business to add a dynamic and dedicated individual to the team. All of our courses are available through various streams of government funding so are a cost-effective way to provide high-quality training within the workplace.

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