Project SEARCH has been life-changing for me
Hi, my name is Anthony Horne. I first got onto Project SEARCH from hearing about it at my school called Phoenix in Tower Hamlets.
I met the Project SEARCH Manager Jamie Bargeman and was successful in interview to start on Project SEARCH in September 2016. I wanted to apply as I did not want to stay at college and I wanted to focus on getting paid employment.
I had three rotations at The Royal London Hospital. My first rotation was a receptionist in the Dental Hospital, my second rotation was portering and for my third rotation I decided to stay in portering and layer on more skills.
The support I got from my Project SEARCH tutor and job coaches really supported me and they gave me advice on work related situations, expectations of me in the working environment, being professional, understanding teamwork and following and learning Barts Health visions and values. My work colleagues and mentors in placements also really helped me with this and taught me work skills through training and hands on experience. I enjoyed my weekly meetings to help me work towards goals and targets needed for my placement job roles.
Project SEARCH really helped me to learn much more about myself and that I can be flexible, a team player and helpful. I have become more mature and am now able to understand and communicate better in various situations. At first I did not believe that I would be able to become an intern on Project SEARCH but I soon realised that I have the potential to be a valued employee through the support of my department, mentors and Project SEARCH team.
I can now proudly say I am a full-time porter working at The Royal London Hospital for SERCO. I started on agency in July 2017 and gained permanent employment this year. I love my role and am a very reliable member of staff and have proved my potential through my Project SEARCH journey.
My job role on a daily basis is collecting and transporting patients. This has to be completed within a timely manner. I have a very responsible role and I follow all of the Barts Health visions and values and take pride in my job and feel I am a valued member of the hospital staff team.
I can say that Project SEARCH has been life changing for me if I hadn’t had the opportunity of Project SEARCH I feel I would not have got a job. It has given me the chance to do things that I would not have been able to do without having a paid job. For example, my dream has been travelling to different historical cities. I always wanted to be able to take my mum on holiday to Belfast as I love history and visiting museums and always wanted to see the Titanic Museum which I have been able to do since having a job. I have also travelled to Rome and visited the Colosseum because of my passion of Roman history.
On a more personal note, I also feel now that I have permanent paid employment that I can now look to plan for my future and to have a family of my own which I never believed would be possible before.