Ashley was unemployed but not claiming benefits. He had completed his Level 1 in Light Vehicle Mechanics but sadly his college would not let him continue to complete his second year.  Due to this knockback and his learning disability, Ashley was lacking confidence and wanted support to find an apprenticeship in his local area and needed this to start ASAP due to financial worries.  Ashley’s Mum asked the CHAOS Group to contact him to see how they could help.

Through the COMPASS project and funding from the European Social Fund, Ashley attended several sessions with a Change Coach at CHAOS where they searched for jobs in his area, contacted potential employers and applied for 3 apprenticeships online. He was successful in gaining an interview with Ford for a Level 2 Light Vehicle Maintenance Apprenticeship; his Change Coach helped him to prepare for the interview.

At this point Ashely realised that if he was successful in getting the job he would struggle to get to and from work due to his bike needing repair work. The Change Coach signed Ashley onto Positive People so that they were then able to fund fixing his bike or public transport until he was able to get his bike back on the road.

Ashley attended 2 interviews with Ford and successfully secured the apprenticeship! He started his new role in November and will be starting college this March to develop his skills.  Ashley is thoroughly enjoying the role and has a mixture of excitement and nerves around starting college. He now has a brighter future ahead thanks to the COMPASS project and the work of his Change Coach at The CHAOS Group.