COULD YOU OFFER A WORK EXPERIENCE PLACEMENT?

What’s involved?

Our innovative programmes include: careers guidance, job-seeking skills, self-presentation, confidence building, assertiveness training and stress management. One of the most important elements is the work experience placement.

WOW has worked with a wide range of placement providers including Edinburgh City Council, Scottish Executive and Edinburgh Royal Infirmary. We aim to ensure that both trainee and employer benefit from the placement. The aim of the placement is to give the women the opportunity to find out more about a new career area or brush up on existing skills.

 

Five trainees from different WOW courses who have successfully completed placements with Lothian University Hospital Division.

What do we want from Placement Providers?

We are looking for a diverse selection of organisations, who are able to offer well-structured and supervised placements. Trainees undertake a work placement for three days a week for three weeks. Employers do not pay any expenses to the trainee as WOW provides the women with a weekly training allowance. It is useful for the women to have a named person within the placement organisation for them to have as their main contact.

How are placements organised?

Trainees spend the first few days of the programme analysing their skills and experience to enable them to establish which career path they want to follow. The Guidance Worker and Course Trainer then work with each woman to help her identify possible employers they would like to approach regarding placement opportunities.

Initial contact about a placement will come from the Course Trainer or the trainee herself. If an employer is keen to proceed with a placement, the Course Trainer and the trainee will arrange to meet with them to discuss details.

For women on the WOW courses, the placement can give them the vital first step back into the world of work. Some of our previous trainees have impressed their placement provider so much that they have gone on to secure employment with them after the course. Below are some examples of comments made by some of the employers who have offered placements in the past.

 

What previous Placement Providers had to say:

" She had an excellent attitude to work. No task was a problem for her & she was an extremely competent & reliable member of our team.”

“ She enjoyed her time with us and used it to get a good idea about what goes on in her chosen career area.”

“ She had a positive, pleasant attitude and was prepared to tackle anything that was requested of her.”

If you would like to find out more about offering placements to our trainees, please contact Ali Paterson at Women Onto Work on 0131 475 2622 or e-mail Ali.Paterson@womenontowork.org