Case Study

Lilian gets her sparkle back thanks to JETS

14 Feb 2022

The Covid pandemic brought an end to Lilian Miller’s 22-year job at a hotel but thanks to the JETS programme the cleaner has got her life in order again.
 
After polishing up her CV and dusting off her fears, Lilian felt so confident that she was the first to leave an Ingeus employment open day with a new job.
 
Lilian, aged 62, from Everton, cleaned rooms at a hotel for over two decades.
She was made redundant in November 2020 but with limited IT skills to access jobs and interviews remotely during the pandemic, she found herself unemployed for 11 months.
 
She says it felt like ‘Groundhog Day’ until she was referred by Jobcentre Plus in Everton to employment programme JETS. Ingeus employment coach Julian Ralston helped Lilian with her CV and booked her on to a computer course. She scooped a new job before it started, at an Ingeus open day.
 
“I was first through the doors and the first to be offered a new job,” she remembered.
“JETS gave me so much support – they said just go in and sell yourself and I did! I felt confident enough to walk into a room full of employers knowing I was capable and had the right experience. Julian had made me a CV to hand around and it was amazing - nobody in their right mind would say no!”
 
Lilian was ‘elated’ to be offered a job with a cleaning company. She now cleans offices and public areas for a building company and loves it.
 
“I’ve never been so welcomed. I’ve been there a few weeks and it feels as though I’ve been there donkey’s years,” she enthused. “I’m so made up and I’m so happy.”
 
Lilian, who enjoys walking and reading horror stories, also won £100 in high street vouchers at the open day. Plus JETS has supported her with money for work trousers and travelling expenses.
 
“I would like to say thank you to the JETS programme for being there every step of the way in supporting my journey back into employment,” said Lilian. “I still see Julian once a fortnight, he asks me if everything is alright and if I need anything, they are just amazing.”
 
Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) is a separate strand of the Work and Health Programme (WHP), delivered in Liverpool by Ingeus. It is commissioned and financed by the Department for Work and Pensions and deemed to be a European Social Fund match funded programme. Ingeus supports the delivery of JETS in the North West, Greater London, Greater Manchester, the North East, and Central areas.