
New job success for Matt
Matthew Nunn has been successful in securing a job as a gardener with the help of the Discovery supported employment team.
Mel Horsfield has coached Matt for several years and encouraged him to try a variety of different roles before he found one that suited him. Mel said:
“At first Matt was interested in shop work and he gained experience of stacking boxes at Wells food bank but the job didn’t play to his strengths. He loves spending time outdoors and enjoys gardening.”
In February 2020, Matt went to visit Orchard Vale Trust in Wookey which offers a professional gardening service to its community. It does this through `Stile Gardening’ – a 12-week course in all aspects of horticulture for adults with learning disabilities. Those who successfully complete the course are offered paid employment.
Matt decided he would like to start the course in February 2020, and if he was successful, it could lead to paid employment. Despite lockdown delaying the course, Matt persisted with it and completed it last month. He has now started his job with Stile Gardening and he couldn’t be happier:
“‘I’m really looking forward to getting paid, saving my money and getting the job done”, he said.
Mel is keen to point out that this is more than just a job for Matt: “He loves the opportunities that Stile Gardening brings; he is learning new skills, working as part of a team and is gaining confidence with a new structure to his week.”
Orchard Vale Trust is a Somerset charity which supports adults with learning disabilities to live life to the full. It received a grant from the Discovery community fund in August 2019, as part of the first round of grant allocations to seven community groups totalling almost £90,000.
In July, ten candidates coached by the supported employment team had successful interviews for paid employment. The team had 22 enquiries from businesses who are interested in supporting an individual into work. Three businesses signed up for the partnership agreement and the supported employment team will now work with them. We’re offering companies in Somerset free training. Find out more