WorkFit Yorks and Humber has recently been working with Blue Dolphin (part of the Haven Holidays brand operated by Bourne Leisure Ltd).
Following a successful informal interview and work trial, Pippa began an eight week work experience placement at the holiday park working in the Reception/Customer Service area and also the Spar supermarket on the site. Prior to Pippa’s appointment, the teams who would be working with her were given Down’s syndrome awareness training. This included how they could make adjustments to tasks in order to give Pippa the information that she would need to do the job in a way that would suit her learning profile. Feedback from the training was very positive with comments like, “We are looking forward to working with Pippa who has Down’s syndrome so that we can share our knowledge and experience.” One of the other comments was, “We have a better understanding of how important it is to be clear about the task and to take the time to listen and understand our new colleague.”
Pippa’s experience at The Blue Dolphin Holiday Park has been very positive for everyone:
Kelly, Customer Experience Manager says: “Pippa is doing brilliantly; she mixes with the team well and was very adaptable to the different tasks. The team miss her on the days she isn’t here!!”
Pippa says, “On Mondays, I work in reception and do lots of tasks such as sorting out and storing keys and typing out tenant’s information. Everyone is kind and helpful, they have made me part of the team.”
Pippa is receiving fantastic support from colleagues at Blue Dolphin. Feedback from the team has been great, in particular about how Pippa has adapted to a busy customer service area.
Pippa also says, “On Thursdays, I work at the Spar Supermarket doing lots of jobs such as putting doughnuts in packets and labelling them. Putting fillings in baguettes and wrapping them. I then put the food out neatly in the shop. I also label other packs of food.
I serve customers and help Karen to put the stock out on shelves.
David is in charge and Wendy and Maureen help me. Everyone is very nice and I enjoy it”.
Supermarket Manager, David says: “Pippa has settled in well and spends the morning in the bakery bagging, labelling & displaying products for sale. She’s picked this up really well and after lunch Pippa serves customers and is more confident on the tills. Other jobs include stocking up the shelves & keeping the sales area tidy. Everyone in the team looks forward to working with Pippa on Thursdays.”
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To find out more about WorkFit and how we support people with Down’s syndrome to access meaningful work opportunities, please contact the team on 0333 12 12 300 or email us on dsworkfit@downs-syndrome.org.uk
For more information visit the WorkFit website https://www.dsworkfit.org.uk/