Pre-Covid, Moustafa Gawish was working as a co-ordinator at Walkers but as remote working became a more standard practice, his role became surplus to requirements.

It was suggested to Moustafa that he could go back to driving but he didn’t want this and chose to look for alternative work opportunities.

Investing in training course to enhance career prospects

It was whilst talking to the Job Centre that he was alerted to the possibility of people taking on more training courses.

“I was applying for various jobs and was getting tired of people telling me that I didn’t have the necessary communication or customer service skills,” says Moustafa. “I decided that I needed to do something about it and required a qualification that would brush up my skills in areas such as customer service, conflict management and more.”

“Talking to a door supervisor contact of mine, he spoke about the Security Industry Authority (SIA) license and how this could open up a range of opportunities and positions including security at retail, football, music events or in warehouses. I was really surprised.”

SWAP course is a ‘real eye-opener’

Moustafa consequently looked at training courses that would provide him with an SIA qualification and enrolled on the Security Sector Based Work Academy Programme (SWAP) at Leicester College’s City Skills Centre.

Moustafa continues: “As a 48-year-old and for someone who’s not been previously involved in the sector, the course was a real eye-opener. It was a productive refresher for elements that I had covered before and gave me some interesting perspectives on cross-networking skills, body work, and verbal and non-verbal communications.

“The course leaders presented a new take on the use of language and how you approach people. It really helped me out and the first aid section was pretty cool.

“We were also taught how to write official statements, about putting CVs together and received information that was useful for other jobs as well. The course was actually better than the ones at the Job Centre in terms of how to apply for jobs.”

Securing a new job

Since completing the training, Moustafa has secured a new position as a Civil Enforcement Officer for Leicester City Council.

“The role has a big focus on customer service as we get lots of engagement with members of the public. Conflict management also comes into this as sometimes, they can be aggressive,” explains Moustafa.

Recommending the course

“I would recommend the course at Leicester College to anyone who’s struggling in between careers, perhaps looking for an SIA role or one with an element of customer service.

“It helped a few people to reassess how they communicate with people, how they portray themselves to others and how to maintain a professional demeanour under pressure.

“It helps with a lot of things and gives you an official qualification. The Network Rail and Carers courses at the City Skills Centre are also good.

“I was surprised how quickly we all got interviews and got into work after taking the course,” concludes Moustafa.