Emmaus Glasgow has welcomed a student from Strathclyde University for a four-month student placement.
Lana Mooney, 20, joins the diverse community at Emmaus Glasgow which supports 24 formerly homeless men and women by giving them a home, meaningful work experience in one of their social enterprises, funded training and an opportunity to regain lost self-esteem to help rebuild their lives. Lana will be working with Emmaus Glasgow until December and will be gaining direct experience of working with vulnerable people who require varying levels of support.
Speaking from her placement, Lana said “I’ve had a really good time here at Emmaus Glasgow so far and I have learnt a lot about the services that we provide to the vulnerable adults that use our service. My placement finishes in December so I’m looking forward to learning as much as I can before I go back to university. The experience has been invaluable in helping me progress and will definitely benefit me when I go on to my final year of studying.”
The university send many students out on placements via the Learning Network West, its partner organisation which matches students with approved placements and quality assures and regulates these. Each placement lasts for several months, with the view to students taking what they have learnt back to the lecture room when they return to university in the new year.
Sarah McCulloch, Placement Supervisor (Personal Tutor) at Strathclyde University said, “Emmaus Glasgow is a fantastic organisation with an amazing ethos. It provides a wonderful learning opportunity for students preparing to go into the profession of social work to learn all that is needed for the role from a first-hand perspective, rather than sitting in a lecture and being told about what happens. Students on placements can work with people directly, which enables them to develop their engagement, assessment and intervention skills on a practical level as well as build up their knowledge and value base. Lana has just started her placement, but I am sure it will be a very rich learning experience for her.”
Richard Allwood, Executive Lead for Emmaus Glasgow said, “It is important for us as a community to provide placement opportunities for students wishing to develop their skills and gain experience in this area. Lana is an asset to the community, and it is a pleasure to work with her to develop the skill set she already has. We can definitely expect big things from her in the future.”