“I have been volunteering at Emmaus Gloucestershire for a year through National Star College. I work behind the till and serve customers. I really enjoy it and I’m hoping that I can carry on volunteering at Emmaus Gloucestershire once I finish college.
At college, I have a pretty full-on schedule with lessons, therapy, fitness sessions and physio. It can be tiring! I’m also part of the Student Union and we recently got back from a ski trip. It was funny, because me and another student skied into a fence!
Through college, we do internal placements in the StarBistro and StarMart to gain experience and skills in different areas before we start doing external placements. I’ve gained work experience in StarMart by helping to stock the shelves. I would like to do more stock sorting at Emmaus Gloucestershire too, but working on the till and dealing with customers is my favourite thing. I really love doing it.
Since volunteering at Emmaus, I have learnt how to work in a professional setting. I would like to carry on and get more experience in some of the other areas so I can choose what I like best. After each time I volunteer, we fill in a job coaching form where I say how the day has gone, what I did well and what I need to be work on. I always say that making it to work is what went well!
I would definitely recommend volunteering at Emmaus Gloucestershire to anyone who is interested.”