Developing skills for employment and for life

A woman delivers a presentation on health foods from India and Hong Kong, the projected screen behind her details Hong Kong's "Old Fire Soup"

It’s National Careers Week, and we want to round it out by showcasing our Planning Future for Parents course! This is a free six-week programme aimed at parents living in Edinburgh that are unemployed, wanting to develop their job seeking skills, and are interested in working towards a better future.

The course is headed up by Hazel Lyons, one of the Training and Employability Project Workers within our Learning and Development team. Each week covers something different – such as communications and teamwork building, letter and CV writing skills, and interview practices. A couple of sessions are also dedicated to helping members build their confidence, and recognise the important of health and wellbeing. Members have told us how much they have loved working with Hazel and greatly appreciate the variety of the sessions she delivers!

“I like the speakers that come in, it helps me to hear English and learn about different things.”

Hazel also arranges for regular speakers from different industries to attend, which gives members the opportunity to learn about different roles and what to expect from certain career paths. Travel costs to and from the session are covered (where required), and a crèche service is provided – ensuring we remove as many barriers as possible for parents looking to get back in to work.

“I feel my confidence has increased because of this course.”

Monday marked the end of the six-week course, and the members came together to deliver their group presentations on a topic of their choosing. It was a great opportunity for everyone to showcase the skills they had developed, and it was excellent to see how much everyone’s confidence had grown since the first week! This highly-interactive session got everyone involved and sharing topics they were passionate about.

Are you a parent looking for a bit of guidance in returning to employment?

Our next Planning Futures for Parents course will be starting soon. If you’re interested in taking part, get in touch with Hazel on 0782 164 0515 or e-mail hazel.lyons@spacescot.org to find out more and apply!