European Social Fund in England

"The programme was brilliant - it took all the mystery and fear out of starting a business"

Nicky Clements had been out of work for around two years after a long illness.

The 43-year-old from South Yorkshire had developed depression following the death of close family members.

Nicky, who is also severely deaf, had been claiming Incapacity Benefit but was keen to return to work.

She had previously worked as an IT teacher but had struggled to cope with the job because of her hearing problems and knew she wanted to pursue a completely different career.

Nicky said: “After school I had gone on to Doncaster College for the Deaf and managed to get into teaching but with my deafness I found it really hard working in that environment.

“When it came to getting back into work I thought, ‘What do I love doing?’.

“I loved decorating and was always doing my own DIY – so that was the path I decided to follow.”

Through her disability employment advisor at the Jobcentre, Nicky secured a decorating apprenticeship, where she learned the trade.

She was then referred to the European Social Fund (ESF) Self-Employment Programme, run by A4e, last September, where she was taught how to set up a decorating business of her own.

“We had eight sessions for eight weeks on subjects such as marketing, tax, promotion and coming up with a business name,” said Nicky.

“The programme was so helpful – it took a lot of the mystery and fear out of starting a business. I was terrified before I started on it.”

Just four months later, Nicky launched her decorating business and following 13 weeks of ‘test trading’ - during which she received £175 a week from the project to cover essential living costs while she built up a client base – she is now going from strength to strength.

She continues to be mentored by her course leader Philip Smith, and, with his help, is about to complete her first tax return.

“The business is ticking over nicely,” said Nicky, who lives in Cantley, Doncaster. “It’s mainly residential work and 90 per cent of it is word-of-mouth referrals.

“I’ve had so much support. Phil has been fantastic – he’ll ring up or email every week and see how I am. And there are different divisions of A4e - they all chip in to help you.

“It’s just nice to know that there are people there who really want you to succeed – you don’t feel like just another number.”

Philip added: “Nicky is a very enthusiastic and dedicated woman who has completely reinvented herself after an illness.

“She prides herself on being a female in a man's world and this has enabled her to relate differently to customers, who appreciate her caring and friendly approach and eye for detail.

“Nicky is also involved deeply in her local community and has undertaken numerous decorating jobs for free to help out.”

Project notes

The ESF Self-Employment Programme is run by A4e. It currently takes 100 people a year across South Yorkshire and runs in Barnsley, Doncaster and Sheffield.

Participants are taught about all aspects of running a business from branding and marketing to sources of finance and tax matters.

The programme runs from June 2008 until June 2011. As of June 2010, the programme had helped 224 clients, with around 65% surviving in business after six months.