Susan changes career to tackle basic skills in the workplace

Susan Tindall is tackling basic skills in the workplace after completing a specialist teaching course with the University of Teesside and Stockton Riverside College.

Susan, from Sedgefield, County Durham, left a career in pharmaceuticals to return to the classroom. She now works as a specialist literacy teacher after completing the specialist teacher training programme in post-14 education.

The course, run in conjunction with the University of Teesside and Stockton Riverside College, was established to support the Government’s Skills for Life strategy.

Places are available for the literacy and numeracy teaching courses, which attract a bursary from the Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills of £6,000 for literacy trainees and £9,000 for numeracy trainees. This is in addition to the University’s own bursary, which students can apply for.

Susan, who has two children aged 3 and 5, said: ‘It is an extremely rewarding profession, helping people with everyday tasks including writing letters - things a lot of people take for granted.

‘In a previous job, I helped a lady who really struggled to write even the most basic words. That year, she sent me a Christmas card that she’d written herself. I gain so much satisfaction from helping people to improve their basic skills like that.’

Susan, who has now enrolled on a Level 4 literacy specialist qualification, added: ‘It is a big leap to return to education. It was 12 years since I graduated with my manufacturing management degree, but you soon adjust and the staff and students provide a vital support network.

‘The facilities at the University and the college are fantastic. The Learning Resource Centre on the University campus is very well stocked with books and useful information and I was able to use the nursery facilities at the college, which were excellent.’

For further information, contact Sue Hyman on 01642 342304.

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