Hi, I’m Ashley Sterio and I can attest that the Kickstart Scheme is a brilliant way of helping 16 to 24 year olds on Universal Credit find relevant career-related jobs. To highlight how much it has impacted me so far, I want to tell you about my experience, from university through to my first month at 2buy2.

Graduating in 2019 with a degree in Journalism, Media & Cultures I knew that I wanted to write creatively, ideally within a marketing field. Armed with that desire and my degree I ventured into the world of job hunting!

I noticed how competitive these roles had become immediately, however, I pushed on, eventually finding myself in a marketing position for a short two-month stint of employment.

When that contract ended in January of 2020, I was back to job hunting. My search began anew! I was filled with hope and excitement to get out there, I’d already got my foot in the door, how hard can it be?  

It was January 2021 and I had been unemployed for an entire year. My motivation and self-confidence were at an all-time low. Throughout 2020, I had completed courses and started up a blog to try and renew some motivation and add to the CV.

I was seriously considering going back to university until I was informed of the Kickstart Scheme by my work coach. A 6-month placement that was related to my career path sounded like the perfect way to build upon my career path.

I felt a renewed sense of vigour as I applied to the positions my work coach sent me. Within a few weeks I had an interview at 2buy2 and soon, after a surprise phone call, I was informed of the good news.

I was officially going to be a Marketing Coordinator!

Working from home initially intimidated me, how would I be able to meet the rest of my team and beyond?

However, I was set up with a laptop and my first few weeks were filled with introductory Teams Meetings. Everybody was incredibly welcoming and friendly, I immediately felt at ease and the excitement of getting to work instantly kicked in.

Learning has been the main theme this month, I’m learning:

It’s fast paced and there’s something new to do all the time but that’s part of the appeal for me. As the weeks pass by, I feel more and more like my work matters and on a personal level, my input is valued. I am excited to see what the future holds in my journey with 2buy2, and it wouldn’t have been possible without the Kickstart Scheme.