Determined mum who filed coursework from her hospital now launching own business
INSPIRATIONAL KIM DIAGNOSED WITH LUPUS JUST WEEKS AFTER ENROLLING AT TOWN COLLEGE
A MUM-OF-TWO dealing with a lifechanging illness fought hard to graduate – even filing coursework from her hospital bed.
Kim Allen, of Loughborough, beat the odds to graduate from her business degree and is now set to launch a company.
The 30-year-old achieved a 2:1 BA (Hons) in leadership and management from Loughborough College, despite being diagnosed with lupus two months after enrolling.
The chronic illness impacted Kim’s studies, making it difficult for her to attend classes – with four of her assignments submitted from her hospital bed.
Kim, mum to Brooke, 11, and Warren, eight, said: “Being diagnosed with systemic lupus erythematosus was hugely difficult to manage and had a detrimental impact on my physical and mental abilities, ability to attend, and really limited what I could do day-to-day.
“In my second year I submitted four of my end-of-year assignments from my hospital bed after complications of the illness had been affecting my heart.”
But her determination to succeed and the support she received from the college inspired her, fighting to complete her work and graduate with her classmates at Loughborough Town Hall.
Kim left school at 16 and worked in the childcare sector, working her way up through the ranks to become a trainer. But it was not enough.
She said: “I had peaked in my career within the childcare sector and wanted further progression. Business management seemed like an appropriate step for me as it was a challenging subject and offered a great opportunity.”
After completing her degree, she now plans to set up a coaching company so she can “achieve financial freedom” for herself and her family, as well as helping others do the same.
Kim said: “It will hopefully launch in mid-2022. I hope to help others to achieve their dreams in business and in life, with a spin-off charity planned to help teenagers to achieve the same, early on, with fully funded coaching.
“This may seem ambitious to some, but my college tutor enabled me to remove my self-inflicted limitations and dream big, work hard, and truly make things happen.”
UNPARALLELED TEACHING
As well as this, Kim has launched property firm RBK Property Group, which aims to help homeowners, landlords and investors to create and maintain their passive income from renting. She is also company secretary for her partner’s tree surgery company, Broadleaf Midlands Tree Company.
Kim said she would not have been able to do any of it without the support and encouragement of her tutors at Loughborough College.
She said: “The quality of teaching at Loughborough College was unparalleled.
“The passion, knowledge and delivery of all subjects was second to none, and the support that I received during my journey, was one of the main factors in my successes. All of the teachers were fantastic and gave 110 per cent to every session. I wouldn’t have achieved what I did without the support of Iqbal Ullah. He made me realise early on if I applied myself, then there was nothing I couldn’t do.”
Kim’s highlight from her studies was competing in the Young Enterprise Awards, where she and her team reached the regional finals and won an award for innovation.
Iqbal, who leads the business management degree course at Loughborough College, said: “Kim, from the first day of induction, demonstrated how engaged she was and how much she wanted to learn.
“This was followed by a strong start with her assessed work which she maintained throughout her studies despite some very challenging issues with personal health.” Chris Cockerton, dean of higher education at Loughborough College, said: “Kim’s story is so inspirational. We’re extremely proud of Kim.”
I submitted four of my assignments from my hospital bed after complications of the illness had been affecting my heart
Kim, below