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

Meet our people

Sonia has worked with children and families in a range of capacities for around 25 years, including roles with youth offenders and young people with disabilities. She had always wanted to get a recognised social work qualification but was never able to give up her job or find enough time to do it.

Essex County Council gave her that chance. They offered to sponsor her through her degree, so she didn’t have to worry about paying fees, and give her the time off work she needed to concentrate fully on her studies.

Sonia describes the first year of her degree as being a bit of a rollercoaster ride. She took a while to adjust to student life, and found all the reading and research challenging at first. She also had to contend with her dyslexia. However, as Sonia goes on to explain, the Learning and Support Department at Anglia Ruskin University were brilliant and gave her all the help she needed.

One of the big pluses about the degree sponsorship for Sonia is the fact that Essex County Council offers a guaranteed job on qualification. New social workers can struggle to get work as most employers want people with experience. So the fact that Sonia doesn’t have to worry about that is great. Plus she’ll get a financial bonus if she passes too.

Although it was a big step for Sonia to go back into education, she has no regrets about doing it. She believes you get as much out of it as you put in. And from a personal point of view, she’s already learnt a huge amount, which will stand her in good stead for the rest of her career.