Meet the team - Robyn, Kickstart Scheme
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Who are you and what is your role at CAWB?
“My name’s Robyn and I work as a Service Support Officer in the Admin team here at Citizens Advice Wigan Borough. My role mainly involves dealing with the administrative side of things - so managing emails; sending out feedback; triaging clients; organising referrals and making sure they go down the right channel amongst other things!”
How did you get into the role?
“I started in August 2021 after graduating from a degree in Philosophy in July. I’d been claiming universal credit for six weeks before I applied through the jobcentre. I’d always known I wanted a role within the third sector so this role really stood out to me as an opportunity to make a step into my career.”
How have you found the experience so far?
“I’ve really enjoyed my time so far. I started on 25 hours as that’s the amount of hours the scheme funds, but CAWB offered me more hours to make it full-time. It’s been a nice transition for me from university studies to full-time work and learning about being an adult after university. The scheme is great because you have the extra employability training which is really beneficial. The management has been great too in putting an induction plan into place where I get the time during work to meet all the different teams through joining their meetings and getting to know specifically about their roles and the wider picture of the service.”
What is it like working with the staff at CAWB?
“My role means that I interact a lot with almost everyone and they’ve all been really friendly and welcoming. I feel like I can ask any questions because they’ll be happy to help with anything and I don’t feel intimidated to ask. The working environment is great too because I really like the sense of shared responsibility and variety in the work. Knowing everyone else is working hard makes you feel much more motivated to do your best.”
Do you have any advice for a young person looking to take up a placement on the Kickstart Scheme?
“I would say that just because you’ve had jobs before or you’ve been in higher education doesn’t mean you don’t deserve the opportunity any less than someone who hasn’t had the prior experience you’ve got. Don’t feel like you’re taking the place from someone just because you may have had opportunities before. There are so many positions out there and don’t count yourself out because you don’t think it’s for you. You get so much out of it due to the scale of opportunities and training and it’s a great way to start your career progression.”
