Achieving at Arriva: Student Secures a Brand New Career

A student who has been studying at Workpays has secured a job with employer, Arriva, which is a complete career change for the individual.

Mark Hunt completed a Customer Service course firstly, and then decided he wanted to enrol in our Level 2 Essential IT Skills course. Mark first heard of Workpays at a Jobcentre Plus Jobs Fair, and was recommended to chat with our staff.

He said: ‘’I was unsure about what the first steps were to gaining employment, which was when I was recommended to chat to Nicole from the Workpays team. Staff were really helpful and guided me towards the Customer Service course.’’

Mark was unemployed, after being made redundant last year after 32 years as a Welder due to COVID-19 and the recent economic downturn. After much thought, he decided he wanted a career change and to enrol on to courses to gain more employability skills.

He stated: ‘’I have always wanted to work with people. I currently do lots of charity work in my spare time with Cancer Research UK, and I know working with the public more regularly would be really rewarding for me. 

‘’Because being a welder requires a high degree of practical skills, my IT and customer relation skills were quite low. Therefore, I wanted to gain more technical experience to take forward into a new career.’’

Arriva, a major bus operating company, came into Workpays to offer learners interviews and careers advice. Mark was successful in his interview, and will now begin a position as a placement coordinator. He stated that his success wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the staff that have helped him along his journey.

He said: ‘’The tutors have been so helpful and have gone above and beyond to support me. They have helped me with adding to my CV, informed me of any jobs I may be interested in, and challenged me to push myself. 

‘’It makes learning much more enjoyable when everyone is so nice. I have been welcomed in with nothing but kindness and support, which has improved my confidence.

‘’I can’t thank the staff enough for everything they have done for me.’’

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