Will Eccles - "Amazing Delivery Representative"

Will Eccles is an amazing young man with Autism who came to our office after a negative experience on a placement in the retail sector in Bolton. Will explained that he was only allowed to monitor the changing room and return and refold clothes 8 hours a day in the back store room; although he repeatedly asked to attempt till work he was not allowed to do so. This shattered his confidence, increased his anxiety and had a severe impact on his mental wellbeing.

When we invited Will to the office we asked him what he liked to do in his spare time. Will explained that he has a passion for driving and volunteers for two local libraries delivering books to elderly people who cannot get to the library. He also loves maps and planning journeys and regularly drives from Bolton to Bedford to visit his brother on his own, drives to Huddersfield (to watch his football team) and a friend at University in Hull.

We explained that our client Ethical CLARITY have customers that live in Bolton and would Will like to be paid to deliver their wonderful products to their lovely customers?  Will was blown away by this opportunity and did not hesitate to say "yes please!"

We then checked with Will’s Mum and Dad to ensure they were clear on what the role required and that we would build the job description around Will and layer the job responsibility in bite size stages. 

ER make sure our candidates well being is not affected in their new world of work. 

Here is what Will's mum had to say ;

“Our family continue to be delighted with our association with Ethical Recruitment and Ethical CLARITY following Will’s traumatic experience of the ‘World of work’ it was hard to see a way of getting him back on track.

We need not have worried; from the first meeting the emphasis was on what Will COULD do well and what strategies could be used to overcome any limitations.

Will is a careful but competent driver; whilst he uses a satnav it is often not required – he will plan his route online prior to setting off and can usually retain this information. He also enjoys the routine of organising his invoices and balancing the cash received (routine is wonderful!)

The main difficulties are communication; this was addressed by the use of scripts, and by rehearsing scenarios with Neil at Ethical Recruitment  – over time and with practice Will has become supremely confident in speaking to customers and the office has received several complimentary comments about him.

In keeping with all individuals with Autism, Will can become very anxious if he is unsure of what is expected of him; to this end Neil sends him pertinent and comprehensive emails outlining what is happening, what he needs to do next, etc. 

Neil in particular, has been eager to seek out and act on any guidance I can offer.

Obviously, none of this is “rocket science” and is an example of good practice for any new employees – unfortunately it is easier NOT to take the trouble to include those with an additional need (as did the previous organisation.)

We are indebted to Neil at Ethical Recruitment and the Ethical CLARITY team for their support and empathy".

You can help Will today by going to www.ethicalclarity.org and placing an order using the discount code Will10 at the checkout.