Success story. Grahame Latto.
My immediate background prior to Trust had been brief forays with other Housing Associations. I was a senior carer at Eildon Housing’s Craw wood dementia unit and a coordinator at Ark Housing providing support to adults with learning difficulties.
Having completed my social care courses, HNC/SVQ3 I wanted to go into management but realised I had to gain more qualifications. I did two courses through the OU and Telford College. I thought these together with the social care ones would interest employers and fortunately Trust gave me a start managing my own development.
I started with Trust Housing in 2001 as Supported Housing Coordinator at Galashiels. It was an exciting and challenging time as Trust was expanding its very sheltered service and had highlighted Galashiels for alterations. When I started it was in the “stoor” of tradesmen as they altered the building to accommodate a dining room, assisted bathroom and a sluice room.
The first challenge was to get a staff team in place to provide the service and I’m pleased to say the majority of them are still there 5 years after starting. I believe that says a lot about Trust as an employer and myself as a line manager, in that staff feel there is enough challenges and support available to make a position interesting and satisfying even after several years.
I decided to apply for my present role of Service Manager as I felt ready to accept a new challenge. Galashiels has been successful as a development and has 19 tenancies now receiving the very sheltered service and there is a healthy waiting list and a good name in the community. I felt my experience and qualification (Trust put me through my SVQ 4 in Health and Social Care) would make me a good candidate for the vacancy.
Prior to entering social care and housing support I spent 8 years in Thailand teaching English as a second language. Having seen the grammar and structure of this story you might be shouting “Fraud!”. A fantastic experience that made me grow up quickly and change my views on some things and certainly made me a more patient person.
When asked to write something for the “success story” web page I initially thought they had confused me with someone else! Me a success? It’s not something that comes easy “blowing your own horn.” However after having done it I recommend it to anyone, you might be surprised!
That’s the history and the only thing I can say about the future is that it will hopefully involve cool beer, nice weather and a retirement in Thailand.
Success story. Shirley Sutherland.
My name is Shirley Sutherland and I am the Housing Operations Manager for the East and North of Scotland. I have a staff group of 11 which consists of a clerical officer, housing assistants, rent assistants, rent officer and Service Managers, Housing & Support .
When I finished studying Social Sciences in 1987 I spent almost a year as a volunteer in the Peoples Palace, a hostel for single homeless men run by the Church of Scotland. Realising that life as a volunteer doesn’t pay the bills at the end of each month, I secured paid employment as a Property Letting Assistant with an Edinburgh Solicitor. I spent 4 years in this post and was later promoted to Property Manager within the lettings department. I gained a great deal of housing experience whilst working within the private rented sector and in 1992 I decided I’d like to broaden my experience and move into more general advice work. This is when I went to work for Edinburgh University Students’ Association as an Advice Worker within the Student Advice Centre. I spent three very happy years in this post and gained a wealth of experience which has been useful throughout my working life.
In 1995 I joined Trust Housing Association as a Housing Assistant where my main duties were within allocations. In 1998 I was promoted to Service Manager, Housing & Support, a role which was very demanding but also very rewarding and which I really enjoyed over the next 5 years until 2003 when I was offered the post of Housing Operations Manager.
I have been well supported during my employment with Trust and have been given the opportunity to participate in lots of relevant training. I really enjoy working with the staff team I manage and they all help to make my working life enjoyable.
Success story. Gerry Brennan.
Hi, I’m Gerry Brennan, Housing Operations Manager for the West of Scotland, based in our Glasgow office at Park Circus. I’ve been with Trust Housing Association since July 2003, when I was employed as a temporary Housing Officer (based in Edinburgh) covering the Angus, Clackmannanshire and Scottish Borders area. Initially, I was given a nine month contract, but when the post became available permanently, I applied, and was offered the job after open recruitment. Prior to this, I was employed as a Housing Assistant with Glasgow City Council in the Carntyne office (my first paid job in housing).
My career in housing began after I graduated with a BA in Social Science from Bell College, Hamilton in 2001. I attended a jobs expo at the SSCC the very week I graduated and spoke to a CIH representative who was waxing lyrically about all the opportunities a career in housing could provide. I was sold, and enrolled in the Post Graduate Diploma in Housing Studies course at the University of Glasgow two months later (I was 30 at this point and prior to completing my BA was a disgruntled Painter & Decorator to trade). I soon found myself in lectures with a group of students who already worked in housing, and I really struggled with the coursework because I had no practical experience to go along with the theory I was learning. To remedy this, I applied to North Lanarkshire Council and was offered a volunteer post in the Motherwell office and have not looked back since. The course became easier and after a few months volunteering was in paid employment in Carntyne, where I worked for eighteen months before joining Trust as a temporary Housing Officer. Three years later, I am Housing Operations Manager – I still can’t quite believe it.
Since joining Trust in 2003, I have been fortunate enough to have worked with a great team of staff and supportive managers in both Edinburgh and Glasgow, and enjoy the many and varied challenges my jobs brings on a daily basis. Yes, it can be frantic at times and often there doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day to get everything done. But, as soon as you accept that, in this type of work your desk will never really be empty, things do get easier.