Chris wanted to turn his life around and needed the Hub’s support to help him follow in his father’s footsteps to become an HGV driver.
Since leaving school, Chris had worked for the same company for over 20 years. He started working in the warehouse and progressed to becoming a supervisor for both the warehouse and yard which included managing a team of staff.
However, a criminal offence resulted in Chris being sent to prison and during this time his father became terminally ill. This was the motivation Chris needed to turn his life around, and his desire to make his Dad proud led to him deciding to follow in his father’s footsteps and train to become an HGV driver.
On his release, Chris was referred by his DWP Work Coach to the Community Employment Hub where he was assigned his own personal mentor, Lorraine, who would work with him to achieve his goal. And as part of the mentoring process, Chris was able to show Lorraine that he was dedicated and committed to gaining his HGV Licence so the funding for an HGV training course was approved.
The first step was for Chris to have a Medical which he passed, and then the relevant forms were completed and sent off for him to obtain a provisional HGV licence. During this time Chris was practicing his online theory test every day so when the time came to sit the exam, he passed with flying colours. The final step was for him to start with the practical driving lessons which Lorraine was able to book with a local company and in less than three weeks Chris had not only finished his lessons but had also sailed through his practical test.
Keen to start work as soon as possible, Chris worked with Lorraine on updating his CV and he contacted a number of agencies to find out what opportunities they had, and in less than a month Chris had secured a full time job with a haulage company.
Commenting on his success, Lorraine said; “I am so pleased for Chris. He worked tirelessly on preparing for his HGV theory and passing that and his practical test first time is all credit to him. He has shown that hard work and commitment pays off and I wish him well for his future.”
Talking about his journey with Conwy Employment Hub, Chris says; “Lorraine arranged absolutely everything for me, even providing me with money to pay for diesel to attend the practical driving lessons, so nothing was too much trouble. She kept in regular contact, even sometimes just to see how I was and she has given me the gift of being able to turn my life around so I will be forever grateful.”