\n Working Wales, a free advice and guidance service funded by the Welsh Government, has now supported 200,000 people on their employment journeys.\n<\/p>\n
\n Among those who have benefited is 27-year-old James from Wrexham, who turned to the service after five years in the television industry left him at a career crossroads.\n<\/p>\n
\n James said: “I didn\u2019t really know what to do.\n<\/p>\n
\n “I didn\u2019t want to just get a job anywhere.\n<\/p>\n
\n “I wanted a career that I can work towards \u2013 something I can move up in and do something using my skills in a different way.”\n<\/p>\n
\n After visiting the Careers Wales centre in Wrexham, James met adviser Laura, who helped him explore his options.\n<\/p>\n
\n James Veal (Image: Supplied) James said: “I was just completely honest with Laura when we met.\n<\/p>\n
\n “And she was really honest with me too.\n<\/p>\n
\n “It was refreshing.\n<\/p>\n
\n “We talked about different careers and ideas, and when I said there were certain jobs I definitely didn\u2019t want to do, she didn\u2019t question it \u2013 she just said, ‘That\u2019s fine.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Let\u2019s talk about what you do want to do.'”\n<\/p>\n
\n During their conversation, Laura noticed James\u2019 involvement in a vintage machinery club, where he organised events and managed volunteers.\n<\/p>\n
\n James said: “Laura looked at that and said, \u2018You\u2019ve got all these skills in events.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Have you ever thought about working in that?\u2019”\n<\/p>\n
\n With her support, James began applying for roles in events and eventually secured a position as an events assistant at the Llangollen Railway Trust.\n<\/p>\n
\n He said: “Laura helped me see how to read a job application properly… what I need to include in my CV and how to write a cover letter.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Laura helped me to see my potential and boost my confidence.\n<\/p>\n
\n “I\u2019d really recommend Careers Wales.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Especially if you\u2019re looking for a new opportunity or career change.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Come and have a chat \u2013 they\u2019re so friendly and they will help you.”\n<\/p>\n
\n The 200,000th customer was Pauline Smith from Cardiff, who sought support after taking voluntary redundancy from her radio production job earlier this year.\n<\/p>\n
\n The 57-year-old was torn between continuing freelance work and pursuing her interest in yoga teaching.\n<\/p>\n
\n Encouraged by a friend, she explored the ReAct+ scheme and booked an appointment with careers adviser Gareth Richards at her local Working Wales centre.\n<\/p>\n
\n ReAct+ is a Welsh Government programme offering tailored advice and financial support for training, travel, and care costs.\n<\/p>\n
\n Pauline said: “It\u2019s much more about giving people confidence that they are okay.\n<\/p>\n
\n “It was just nice to talk through with somebody the fact that I\u2019ve taken redundancy, and to look at where I was at and where I was going to go.\n<\/p>\n
\n “Everybody has something to offer when they walk through those doors \u2013 it\u2019s just finding out what that is and how confident they are in those.”\n<\/p>\n
\n Pauline Smith (Image: Supplied) Nikki Lawrence, chief executive of Careers Wales, said: “Reaching our 200,000th customer is a major milestone for Working Wales and a clear reflection of the impact we\u2019re having on individuals and the wider Welsh economy.\n<\/p>\n
\n “James and Pauline\u2019s stories highlight how we help people at every stage of life to build their confidence, develop their skills, and find meaningful work.”\n<\/p>\n
\n Working Wales, delivered by Careers Wales, offers personalised support to anyone aged 16 and over, whether they are just starting out, facing redundancy, or looking to retrain.\n<\/p>\n
\n The service is available online, by phone, and in-person across Wales.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Working Wales, a free advice and guidance service funded by the Welsh Government, has now supported 200,000 people…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":300387,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[5010],"tags":[748,4884,16,15,1764],"class_list":{"0":"post-300386","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-wales","8":"tag-britain","9":"tag-great-britain","10":"tag-uk","11":"tag-united-kingdom","12":"tag-wales"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"https:\/\/pubeurope.com\/@uk\/114934870492591776","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300386","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=300386"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/300386\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/300387"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=300386"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=300386"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=300386"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}