Finding a job when you're visually impaired — Scope | Disability forum
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Finding a job when you're visually impaired

Maxo_
Maxo_ Community member Posts: 5 Listener
Help and advice please, I currently feel useless, I can't find a job suitable to me anywhere. I have looked on every job site I know and half of the jobs require a drivers license and the rest are for graduates, front of house (which I have problems communicating due to a lisp) or are just too far away. I have just come out of a 3 year unable to work sick note, and living on £250 a month because the PIP DWP department deems me able to work because i "look well nourished" (yes that was an actual comment made on the form.

Where do I go from here, I am completely lost and it is affecting my mental health, i just want to be out there doing something not stuck in my house watching the world go by,

Thanks for reading, 

Max, 23, West Sussex

Comments

  • Chloe_Scope
    Chloe_Scope Posts: 10,586 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi @Maxo_, I'm really sorry you have been unable to find work. What kind of work are you interested in doing?

    It might be worth looking at the Support to Work programme. It is an online and telephone service which can work with you to try and find work.

    Please do let me know if I can do anything else to help :)
    Scope

  • Maxo_
    Maxo_ Community member Posts: 5 Listener
    Hey! thank you for your reply, I'd love to work in a kennel or cattery as that's what I know best. Funnily enough, I have just received a reply from a Kennel local to me that asked for my CV! I am very excited and hope it leads to something. Thank you for the link I will have a look at that, and I appreciate the help!

    Thank you!
  • Chloe_Scope
    Chloe_Scope Posts: 10,586 Disability Gamechanger
    Hi @Maxo_, this sounds like a great job! I know I'd love to do something like that!!! Oh I really hope the place local to you is able to offer you work. Please do let us know :)
    Scope

  • Pia_Scope
    Pia_Scope Scope Posts: 41 Pioneering

    Hi @Maxo

    Thanks for sharing your challenging situation with us.

    Hopefully you are now happy working in the kennel, but if that is not the case, I will try to provide you with some advice.

    Do you have any work experience?

    In your post you are not mentioning what type of, if any, job roles that you have held previously and therefor I’m not sure what type of jobs that you are looking for, apart from working in kennels/ catteries.

    If you can think of specific job roles that you are skilled to do then one way to find a match is to use google search engine where you type in the job role, then vacancies or jobs, before the area where you are looking to work.

    Another way, apart from the usual job search online, is to create a speculative letter that you can send out to employers that you would like to work for, enquiring if they have any suitable vacancies. 

    Although it can take some time to secure a suitable job, the good thing is that there are many jobs out there that doesn’t require a driver license or excellent communication skills.

     

    Should you feel that you could benefit from further support and advise you are more than welcome to read about and maybe register with our Support to work service that you can find in this link;

    https://www.scope.org.uk/employment-services/support-to-work/

    We can offer you advise on transferable skills and job searching, creating good quality CV’s, cover/ spec letters, job applications and more.

     

    I wish you all the best with your job searching (or the job in the kennel)

     

    Kind regards

    Pia


    Pia
    Scope Employment Advisor
    Phone: 0300 222 5742
    Email: supporttowork@scope.org.uk
    www.scope.org.uk/supporttowork

  • April2018mom
    April2018mom Posts: 2,882 Disability Gamechanger
    Hello @Maxo_
    Have you considered volunteering or not? The charity shops are always in need of volunteers or you could always contact RNIB to see if there are any vacancies available. Alternatively, what about freelance work? Have you considered being a entrepreneur? 
    Additionally, you should check out the job opportunity section of your local newspaper. Often there are a limited number of jobs offered in there, have a read.
    Best of wishes. RNIB has more information on this webpage worth reading as well. What are your skills and abilities? Ask at your local library or contact them directly for advice. Do you have a linkedin account? Set up accounts on all the normal job opportunity sites and see how many opportunities are available. 
    https://www.sightadvicefaq.org.uk/employment-work/types-work
  • Adrian_Scope
    Adrian_Scope Posts: 10,821 Scope online community team
    Hi @Maxo_. Just wondering if you had any luck finding something?
    Community Manager
    Scope

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