My name is Sophie Laurie-Lynch and I was employed by OxLEP Skills through a scheme called Kickstart. I started at the beginning of December and have loved every minute of my role. Kickstart is a 6 month contract paid by the government in order for people to get experience in different roles whilst earning money at the same time. Take a look at my vlog to find out more about what I've been doing since I started.
One of the things I liked most about the Kickstart scheme was the fact that I could tell my work coach how many hours I wanted to work and where I needed the job to be so that she could then go and look for jobs that met my needs. I have two children, so this was perfect for me.
When I had a message about the Events and Communications Assistant role for OxLEP Skills, I looked into the company and was very excited to apply! My interview was with Melanie Ringer and Sarah Marlow, after the interview I knew from how lovely they both were that I just needed to work for the company! I didn’t have any direct experience for the role, but had gained relevant skills from previous jobs that were needed for the Events and Communications position.
Since I started, I have gained so many new skills! I had never really worked with different software and now know how to use Canva to create posts for social media, I have gained knowledge for more than just the basics for different Microsoft softwares and have learnt to be so much more creative when creating posts for social media! OxLEP have given me so much support throughout my journey, I have been taught how to do procurements and campaign plans whilst always having colleagues there to answer any questions I may have!
I had the privilege to meet Nigel Tipple, the Chief Executive of OxLEP. Nigel made me feel very proud to be a part of the company. He took time to ask me about how I’m finding my role and where I want to go once my contract is up. My honest answer is that I don’t want this journey to end! I would love to stay with OxLEP and learn even more than I already have.
I want to take this moment to thank everyone at OxLEP for this amazing opportunity and for giving me the support I have needed in order to succeed in the way I set out to in the beginning. I would like to say a massive thank you to Melanie Ringer, who not only sets me new tasks every day in order for me to learn new things, but is also there with so much support and advice whenever I am in need.
