My first day with MacIntyre was Monday 17th February 2014; I had joined the No Limits service in Oxfordshire as a Programme Coordinator. My first day was a pretty scary day, I had been in my previous role for over six years so moving to a different organisation was actually quite scary; I was walking into the unknown and not really knowing what to expect. But I embraced it and walked into the office to meet a fantastic Programme Manager and an incredibly kind and caring group of Programme Coordinators and administrative staff. The team immediately made me feel at ease and supported and I knew that I would enjoy working with all of them and with MacIntyre; to be a part of an organisation that delivers Great Interactions and supports facilitation skills is definitely an organisation that I want to be a part off!
Throughout the eighteen months spent within the Oxfordshire service I have learnt a lot about the ‘MacIntyre way’ and about myself; I come from a FE (Further Education) background, which can be very business-like and often loses the person centred way and does not always deliver, and respect, Great Interactions and facilitation skills. Coming to No Limits I could see that everything you do is about the person you support and they really are at the centre. Everyone within MacIntyre goes that extra mile to make sure that everyone is treated individually, everyone is valued and respected and most importantly everyone is given a choice to be who they want to be.
Being given the opportunity to be a part of delivering Great Interactions with the people we support was fantastic. I remember the first time I worked with a young lady in the Oxfordshire service; with limited mobility and a lot of time spent in her wheelchair, I helped to hoist the young lady out of her chair and onto a swing in an outdoor setting… I have never seen someone smile that much; she was so happy!!
Whilst working within the Oxfordshire service I was then given the opportunity to work within the Berkshire service; this had merged with Oxfordshire so I put myself forward to learn about the same service but in a different area. Through this I also got to know more about the My Way team and the challenging yet incredibly supportive role they have with transitioning young people both in and out of the service; they are an amazing team and I felt very lucky to be working with such fantastic people.
Finally in September 2015 I was appointed as Programme Manager for the No Limits service in Buckinghamshire and it has been a whirlwind – where does the time go, I can’t believe it’s already January! But it has been fantastic to be a part of another great service and meet more amazing people and be a part of such an inspiring team!
Throughout working for three different No Limits services there have been a variety of differing hurdles along the way, but I can say, hand on heart, that I love working for MacIntyre; the people I have met along my journey have been supportive, friendly, caring and generally just amazing and I feel so lucky to be a part of the MacIntyre organisation. MacIntyre lives and breathes Great Interactions and to be a part of this is something we can all be proud of!!
Jo Kent
Programme Manager
No Limits, Buckinghamshire
Please click on the link to watch The Roadshows 2015 film.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n-TkfuBPf48