Calderdale employment adviser receives ‘fabulous’ awards recognition

Lorraine Fenney, who lives in Halifax, has been helping people find work for the past 20 years but she believes the support she gets from Newground Together, an employment skills charity she has been at for nearly six years, has allowed her ‘to go that extra mile’ to help people in Calderdale.

Falkirk-born Lorraine, said: “It is an absolute privilege to be nominated. I am really pleased that the work we do is recognised because we are up against some big names. We are a small charity and a small team but we do some remarkable stuff. It is fabulous.

“What’s been great is the fact that at Newground I am allowed to go that extra mile for people.

“When you recognise there is a barrier preventing somebody from moving forward, you don’t have to stick to the usual employment advice.

“If someone has a housing issue or is experiencing real deprivation and needs food parcels, I can help with all that, which enhances their lives and gets people closer to the labour market.

“I am proud of each and every individual that I work with and I am glad that I get to listen to people and put plans in place and help people recognise what it is that they need - whether that’s a university lecturer moving careers or people with learning disabilities. I have supported a wide breadth of people

“Since COVID we have seen people who have been really isolated and, as a consequence, they have suffered from social anxieties. People can now access things but some people still don’t want to - the idea of going into work is really, really scary.

“I would be absolutely elated if we won. I would be over the moon. Being nominated in the first place is great and being shortlisted is fabulous. But I don’t think I'd be able to hold the tears back.”

Success in the ERSA awards is an official commendation of exceptional best practice in employee-related services, judged by independent industry experts who recognise the people who make a real difference in the employment sector.

Emily Pearson, Community Programmes Manager with Newground Together, said: “Lorraine is selfless and would never say, ‘I’m really proud of doing that,’ she would say, ‘I’m really proud of someone else for achieving that,’ even though she supported them to do it.

“She’s the kind of person who texts her customers in the hairdressers when she’s getting her hair done! She always celebrates their success and doesn’t see it as her own.

“It’s so richly deserved and a real testament to her passion, sincerity and her ability to build trusting relationships that take each person on their own unique journey, empowering them to return to work or education. There are a lot of people locally who are enormously thankful for what Lorraine has done for them.

"It shows there is help out there in Calderdale if people are struggling. There is always hope and that is the key thing about Lorraine - she always sees everyone as having the potential to achieve whatever it is they want to achieve.”

Winners will be announced on November 30 at a ceremony in Birmingham.