No qualifications is no barrier to EK’s Joshua
Rising star is relishing opportunity in workplace
A young East Kilbride man who left school without any qualifications has emerged as a rising star in the workplace.
Joshua Templeton faced a future with few prospects, but is shining in the workplace after a Cambuslang firm put their faith in him.
While struggling with family issues, Joshua, 21, left Duncanrig Secondary School in Westwood in December 2013 when he was half way through fourth year.
“For a time, I didn’t really know what I wanted to do,” admits Joshua.
“I really just took a break for a few months.”
He went on to attend Langside College as part of a course that was designed to help young people who had recently left school.
“After a few months of being with the college, I joined a group called Enable Scotland, which are centered around work preparation, confidence building and job searching. I was with Enable for just under a year and in this time I learned a lot about how the job industry works and also how to do conservation work, as we did volunteer work at South Haugh park in Hamilton.
“After I left Enable, I applied to the Job Centre in the hope that I could find work through them, and this is where I first heard about Routes to Work South.”
Joshua arranged a meeting with Routes to Work South (RTWS), which helps to prepare candidates for work and matches them with prospective employers.
After an initial session, he attended RTWS’s East Kilbride office every Friday for job searches.
With their help, he undertook various courses – from basic First Aid and fire training and prevention, to a manual handling course, several online courses on risk assessment and risk prevention, and four sessions of a confidence-building course.
“The women that I met at Routes to Work South were also just generally lovely people to be around, very kind and also very patient,” he said.
A breakthrough came when he was offered an interview for a two-month work placement with Cambuslang-based BookSource – one of the UK’s fastest–growing distributors of books, maps and music.
In preparation, RTWS put Joshua – who lacked previous interview experience – through a mock interview, which he found really helpful.
“After my interview with the operations director at BookSource, I was asked to come back in and start my work placement on February 4, 2019,” he explained.
“For the two months, I would work from Monday to Thursday and then go to RTWS on the Friday to update them on how my work placement was going.
“Once the two month work placement was up, I was offered a part-time job at BookSource, which I accepted as I enjoyed and still enjoy working for the company.
“Then, at the end of June, I became a full-time staff member of the company at which point I left the Job Centre and also left Routes to Work South.”
Initially, his responsibility was to select orders around the warehouse and deliver them to the packing area for dispatch.
A year on, he has learned how to pack both smaller and full pallet orders.
“My main responsibility nowadays is to pick and pack pallet orders, which could range from just one pallet, to four or five pallets at a time,” he continued.
“In addition, I have recently learned how to deal with returned orders, new books that enter the warehouse, and also our post orders.”
Not only does Joshua find his job rewarding, it has given him new confidence and self-belief.
“I would say that BookSource as an employer has been very fair to me,” he said.
“Everyone I work with is kind, funny, hardworking and just generally good people.
“I really do enjoy working for BookSource, especially when everyone is so easy to get on with. It has increased my confidence a lot, and the company has allowed me to widen my skills range.
“They’ve also shown me how to interact with people better and given me a lot of practical experience that I can use to better my future.”
Following his successful journey into employment and his change of fortunes, Joshua has valuable advice for any young person who may lack direction:
“Be patient, don’t stress yourself out, make sure you have your CV updated fully so that all of your achievements and experiences are included.
“Focus on your strengths, try to find jobs that are built around what you’re good at, even if it is something you think you don’t want to do,” he advised.
“Also, seek help from family, friends and anyone who is offering you a helping hand. Apply to an organisation like Routes to Work South because, if your experience with them turns out like mine, you will be in good hands. Just be yourself with job hunting and interviews, don’t put yourself down.
“There’s no better person you could be than by just being yourself.”
Joshua’s enthusiasm and strong work ethic continues to impress his bosses.
BookSource warehouse manager Jordan McDermott said: “Josh has a great attitude and brings a lot of energy to the job, with a willingness to learn that’s led him to become a key member of the warehouse team.”
For more information about Routes to Work South, call their Cambuslang office on 0141 646 0500.