• Anita
• Barbara
• Bonnie
• Denise
• Nicky
• James
• Kiera
• Sonia

Meet our people

Kiera has always wanted to work with children. After leaving sixth form college, she wanted to do a Social Work degree but was too young, so completed a counselling studies qualification instead.

Originally from the North of England, Kiera moved to Essex to further her social care career. She successfully applied for a family care worker role at Essex CC and started gaining valuable experience in the Children and Families team.

She had the chance to work on a one-to-one basis with children, rather than just dealing with parents and carers. And this helped to confirm that this was definitely the career for her.

Once she had a bit of experience under her belt, Kiera was given the chance to study full-time for her Social Work degree. Not only did Essex County Council fund her studies, they also guaranteed her a job at the end of it. This was a big plus for Kiera as it meant she could focus fully on getting her qualification, rather than trying to fit it around work.

Kiera did her degree at Anglia Ruskin University. She did a number of placements while on the scheme and one of them involved working with disabled children. She found it a fantastic experience and convinced her that this was the area she wanted to work in when she finished her degree.

Kiera also describes how the course helped her broaden her general knowledge of social care, and gave her the chance to work with both adults and children, and learn about the legal side of things too. All in all it was a great experience and it gave her a great deal of confidence in her ability to become a successful social worker.