After taking part in a Movement to Work (MtW) placement, Danya Al-Rahmani joined the Child Maintenance Group (CMG) in DWP.

Danya works at Clearbrook House, Plymouth, as a CTST Triage Caseworker. She graduated from the University of Plymouth with a law degree and said:

“Ever since graduating, I had been applying for paralegal and training contract jobs, but the competitive legal field and the impact of COVID-19 meant my applications were rejected.”

“When my Work Coach offered me MtW and the chance of a Kickstart role, I jumped at the opportunity.  The night before my first day with CMG I was so nervous.  My first language is Arabic, and I was worried about not understanding customers or not being able to communicate with them in a professional manner.  However, I’ve realised this is not the case and I’ve overcome this fear.”

“I’ve had stand out support from my colleagues.  For example, during a phone call with a customer who was refusing to keep to their payment schedule I had a trainer alongside, advising me.  After this challenging call, I received a huge amount of encouragement from my line manager and colleagues, plus a £25 voucher for handling the call so well.”

“If I had to describe my first week at DWP in 3 words it would be ‘intense, exciting and different’.  ‘Intense’ because the induction involved a lot of training, ‘exciting’ because it’s my first ever job and ‘different’ as I’d been sitting at home, unemployed for 2 years.  I spent a lot of time with my dog, Oreo, a 5-year-old Shih Tzu, who has been with me since he was a puppy.

“It was fantastic to get my first pay packet – I went shopping and took my family out for a meal to celebrate.”

“Through experience in CMG I have gained valuable customer service experience and problem-solving skills. I can put this job on my CV – it will be a stepping stone to future employment and hopefully help me get accepted onto the training to qualify as a solicitor.”