Sarah is a single woman from Eritrea who has been living in London for several years. Over the past decade, she has had short-term jobs including at a takeaway store, at a farmers market and at a grocery store and voluntary work at an adult care centre. However, more recently she has not had any employment other than an evening office cleaning job. She had started to feel under-confident and this was made worse by her health problems.

Sarah was paired with Emiko, a lawyer working with a corporate law firm. Sarah wanted to return to the catering industry and Emiko worked with her on her CV and on improving Sarah’s computer and internet skills, including searching for jobs online. Over this time period, Sarah and Emiko developed a bond, discussing Sarah’s progress in a holistic way, including the management of health issues and housing. Sarah then heard of an agency looking for interpreters. They spent a session preparing for the interview and Sarah got the job providing interpretation services for underprivileged children and refugee families. She continues in this job, balancing it with her regular office cleaning job in the evenings. She hopes to get a diploma in interpretation, which will enable her to get a more permanent job, possibly as a social worker.