Shohana

Project: Events and Engagements – Preventative Health Services

I wanted to help people and work towards addressing social problems across our communities. Sounds corny but it’s true. During my final year I’d applied for a few graduate schemes at banks and firms but my heart just wasn’t in it. I’ve always been active in voluntary work, broadly helping people raise their quality of life.

So local government was the magic answer – a proper job with an excellent work/life balance. Unlike central government, local government lets you to get close to your community. It’s about delivering services where it matters, and that’s what appeals.

It’s difficult moving confidently into a field you know little about. But with the ngdp, I felt carefully guided. They gave me excellent training – practical and theoretical - and enabled me to get to a level where I could apply for high level jobs I’d never have thought myself capable of before.

The ngdp assessment centre was so encouraging; it really didn’t feel like I was being tested. But I think that was the best way for me to give 100%, when I was totally relaxed and enjoying myself.

I’m currently the Events and Engagement Coordinator for the Tower Hamlets Partnership. I love going out on a daily basis to different parts of the borough and thinking of new ways to engage people. But it’s a very demanding job, particularly with over 30 events to organise in a year, so I’m working many out of office hours. But because of flexitime, I know I can take time off later. I have a little toddler at home, so being with her when I can is very important.

Local government’s a hidden gem in terms of the kind of things you can really achieve for people – the numbers of disadvantaged women I’ve been able to help by raising awareness of health issues, how many more bins I’ve been able to get out on the streets - the raw real results.

Right now I’m organising a specifically targeted event for BME women to encourage and motivate them to understand the preventative health services available, in the context of how they view health from traditional and often religious perspectives. It’s about hitting the issue right where the problem lies, and if you do not engage people thinking within their own specific contexts and experiences, you can never really make a difference.