Lucy's internship with Norwich for Jobs Campaign Organisation

Hello! My name is Lucy and I am now reaching the end of my 3 month internship with Norwich For Jobs, a local campaign to halve youth unemployment in Norwich.

Following on from last graduate internship with the University Writers’ Service, I was looking to further develop my relationships with local employers and young people on a broader scale – I’m pleased to say that this internship allowed me to do just that!

My job role holds three sections:
• Employment engagement assistant, which involves me communicating with local employers and encouraging them to consider taking on young people within the workplace.
• Volunteers Team Leader, where I have worked alongside our team of volunteers to organise events, network and promote the project through social media and our website. (www.norwichforjobs.org,uk)
• Marketing Manager, where I have been responsible for the marketing for events, such as the Business Breakfast and ‘One Year On’ celebration, and our welcome packs for prospective employers.

Norwich For Jobs has allowed me to thoroughly immerse myself with its multiple different projects. I’ve been able to regularly contribute at Steering Group meetings, where we’ve discussed the future plans of the project alongside Chloe Smith MP and important Norwich businesses, such as the Norfolk Chamber of Commerce and Norfolk TEN Group. We’ve also held a monthly Young Persons’ panel which has provided me with the opportunity to discuss youth unemployment with fellow job seekers, and employers and providers who are currently employing 16-24 year olds.

In my final month, I’ve been tasked with organising our ‘One Year On’ celebration event within The Forum. It’s been an extensive task which has pushed me beyond my limits and allowed me to gain a lot more confidence in event management and marketing. The tasks have involved me booking guest presenters, providing catering, organising filming sessions and drawing in the contacts I’ve made to encourage a wider promotion of the event - an often challenging task in a non-profit project! I’m really looking forward to seeing it all come together.

The skills which I’ve gained and the relationships that I have made with local Norwich businesses have been invaluable in gaining my confidence in the workplace and I feel privileged to have been allowed such a significant amount of involvement with the campaign over the past three months.