The moment I realised... I wanted to be a social worker

I started to volunteer for a local charity called Open Hearts Open Borders (OHOB) and realised I wanted to work in the voluntary sector. I applied for the social work degree at Plymouth because I knew it would give me the skills and the knowledge to succeed within that ambition.

I first recognised I was becoming a social worker while I was working with OHOB.

I became aware that social work wasn't just working in an office, it was working in the community and it was working with people. Therefore I realised that I was actually already doing social work with OHOB.

I’ve really enjoyed my placement. I worked for BEES UK – Bespoke Engaging Educational Service, who work with young people, ages 11 to 14.One young person really struggled to tie their laces and the other young people started to nudge each other and point. I found it really difficult to just step back and observe that situation and see what the young people would do to try and resolve it themselves. One of the young people actually went over to that young person and helped them tie their shoelaces. If I had stepped in in that moment I could have stopped that and put a barrier in place. It was really difficult for me to stop and take a second and observe that situation, but by doing so I let them have that moment for their learning and their peer support.

Social work is a really versatile career and you can go into so many different sectors just from one generic degree. It's a really creative role so every day is different.