Why I Love My Job

Why I Love My Job

Jane Greenham is deputy service manager at a house for people with learning difficulties in London run by the charity United Response.

I joined United Response in January as senior support worker and recently got this job. Working alongside the service manager, I supervise a team of people to provide 24 hour support for three female residents. 

I previously worked in retail management, but it just wasn’t for me. It was a stressful environment and the work left me completely unmotivated.

As several members of my family were already working in social care it seemed like an obvious choice for me. I went along to a careers fair and that’s when I found out about United Response’s work, supporting people with learning difficulties or mental health needs to live in the community.

I had never worked with people with learning difficulties before and so I had a lot to learn. But the in-house training is fantastic and I feel really supported by my manager to take up as many opportunities as possible.

I felt a bit nervous about starting the job. It was so different to anything I’d done before. But everyone at the house was really friendly and I soon settled in.

The best part of my job is spending time with the three women who live here. The kitchen is where all the life is and mealtimes can be particularly hectic. I really enjoy the chats we have around the table. I like hearing about how the tenants feel and the new things they want to do.

The most frustrating part of my job is never having enough hours in the day to do all the things I want to do. But I’ve become very good at taking a deep breath, stepping back and prioritising. And I have learnt that I can’t do everything.

I feel like I’ve found my calling here. I’m not saying my job is always easy. But I try to take it in my stride and see each challenge as an opportunity to develop and learn something new.

I’d say to anyone if you’re willing to try out new things then give social care a go. It’s really rewarding. It gets me out of bed in the morning in a way that my old job never did.

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