Matthew Angel has been employed by training provider Educ8 since January 2017.
Matthew started as a Trainee Assessor working towards completing his TAQA award to become a qualified Assessor.
Matthew spent two years as an Assessor before he began to experience issues with anxiety and depression which was due to several factors.
Matthew was supported by the team at Educ8 during this difficult time and with full support from his manager at the time was encouraged to apply for another role within the organisation.
He secured a position as administration assistant within the admin team where he worked for two years. It was a more structured role, which helped to ease his anxiety. Matthew also attended sessions with the charity MIND where he was able to speak to trained counsellors about his concerns.
After two years working on the admin team a vacancy arose for a Health and Social Care Recruiter, a large part of the role would involve speaking with learners and employers, but Matthew thought he was ready and applied for the job.
Educ8 is supporting Matthew in his new role with regular well-being calls and assessing his caseload to ensure it is manageable for him.
Katie Owen, Educ8’s Clinical Health and Social Care Team Leader and Matthew’s line manager said; “We work very closely as a team, and various colleagues from across the business provide support with recruiter’s caseloads in order to reduce the pressure of a fast-paced role.
“Matthew is an asset to the team and continues to work in positive ways to overcome the challenges that he faces.
“Due to his own mental health challenges he engages with staff from across the business to support them with theirs. This can be anything from a chat, meeting for a coffee or referring staff to our well-being support team.”
Matthew shared his story with staff during one of their well-being ‘Gr8 days’. He felt it was important to show people with help and support you can begin to deal with your anxiety and ease the pressures that you put on yourself.
Matthew can’t praise Educ8 enough “Without the help and support from my managers and colleagues I don’t believe I would still be with the organisation.”
“The Educ8 values have played a massive part in my decision to keep going and doing the best I can within my role to enrich the lives of the learners I work with.”
Matthew supports Signposted Cymru and raised over £2,000 last year by cycling 10 miles every day throughout the month of November.
Signposted Cymru is an initial and immediate intervention with early prevention for individuals struggling and needing support with mental health and well-being issues.
Signposted Cymru offers responsive, tailored help and support for individuals who strive for a brighter future. https://signpostedcymru.com/
Author: Karen Smith – NTFW.
