Jordan O'Rawe is a young man from Ballymena, who was referred to Now Group from the local JBO in 2020 as he was hoping for some support with employment and further training. He was put in touch with Paddy Crothers, the Employment Officer for Now Group in the Ballymena area.
Jordan and Paddy met one-on-one on a weekly basis to work on Jordan’s CV, his interview skills and conduct joint job searches. Paddy recommended that Jordan take part in Loaf Academy, Now Group’s accredited hospitality and catering course, as he had experience within catering and it is a subject he began to study at college.
Loaf Academy is a 12-week theory and practical course that was funded by the Mid & East Antrim Council. The course was delivered in Ballymena and it was here that Jordan and a group others completed various training modules within the catering and hospitality sector. At the end of the course, Jordan sat and passed his Level 2 in Food Hygiene.
Now Group are currently working in partnership with the Galgorm Group. Through this partnership several job opportunities became available within their various sites. One of the roles that was available was that of a Prep Chef, in their Castle Kitchen restaurant. With Jordan’s skillset, along with his recently acquired qualifications, Paddy recommended Jordan for this role. He spoke with Jordan and the Galgorm Group, which then resulted in Jordan being invited to interview for the position.
Paddy accompanied Jordan to the interview in the Galgorm. Jordan explained that this was very helpful as it made him feel at ease knowing that he had that support. During the interview, the staff from Galgorm invited Jordan to take part in a week’s trial at their Castle Kitchen site. Here Jordan would be given the opportunity to not only show his skills to a prospective employer, but to also get a feel whether he would like the role himself.
At the end of the weeks trial, Jordan was offered a permanent position as Prep Chef. This was in September 2021. With the continued support of Now Group, particularly Workable NI Officer Megan McCleave, Jordan continues to enjoy his role and is a valued member of staff.
For more information on our support services and how our team can help you into work in 2022, call on 028 9043 6044 or email us at admin@nowgroup.org.