When Paul, 56 from Ashington, found out that he would need to move from Jobseekers Allowance to Universal Credit, he felt really worried. He was particularly nervous that the change would mean he would be pressured into finding work not suited to him, having been out of work for 18 years. He was also anxious about his payments, wondering if the move to Universal Credit could cause him to fall behind on his bills.
However, Paul needn’t have been so concerned as he found support for his move to Universal Credit through his local Jobcentre Plus in Northumberland. He found his Work Coach was able to help him in more ways than he realised! They signposted Paul to the Learning Hive Centre, via the Northern Learning Trust who supported him with making his online claim for Universal Credit.
Learning Hive, which offers skills, education and training to social housing tenants, were a provider Paul was very happy to work with. For 2 years, Paul has been attending their centre in Ashington, where he has been developing his reading and spelling.
These have come on “leaps and bounds” and this support has given Paul a newfound confidence when using his Indeed account to look for work, with the support of the Learning Hive Team.
Once his Universal Credit claim had been made, Paul was able to work directly with his new Work Coach Pauline, to guide his future steps towards work and manage his future Universal Credit payments. Pauline also helped him manage his emails, letters and online journal messages!
Paul said the entire process felt “very smooth and all his fears were allayed” thanks to the support and guidance of his Work Coach and he is confident about the future. He continues to develop his literacy and communication skills at the Learning Hive Centre and is very happy looking for work.
Good Luck to Paul in his ongoing job search!