Norfolk army veteran helping former soldiers into paid employment
James Howells set up Change of Mission after leaving the military and finding it hard to adapt to everyday life
An army veteran from Norfolk is helping get former soldiers in the county into paid employment.
James Howells, from Norwich, set up Change of Mission after leaving the military and finding it hard to adapt to everyday life.
He's now supporting other veterans in a similar position, by running job fairs: "Soldiers come from one environment which is known to them, and predictable, even in combat, with a family around them, into a civilian environment, where they don't know people, or how the culture works.
"It's a completely different culture."
He's focused on getting ex-soldiers into employment, because he says it can help them re-acclimatise: "It helps society.
"You give people a purpose, their mental health and well-being improves, if you've got a good quality employer.
"It all links together."
"They'll never let you down"
He says job fairs are a great way of helping veterans get face to face with potential employers, so they can have a chat in person, rather than relying on a CV which might not highlight their best skills: "It's beneficial for everyone.
"Ex-service people can speak directly to employers, meaning they're not hindered by a system which isn't suited for the skills they actually have...
"And employers get high quality employees."
He has this message for employers considering hiring ex-service people: "Give them a chance... an interview or just a discussion - it will make a real difference...
"Rather than asking them to send a CV in, just give them a chance to have a chat, get to know them, because their CV may be written in a way you don't understand, but if you give them an opportunity, I can assure you, the majority will never let you down."
Change of Mission is currently working on hosting more events across Norfolk, Suffolk and Cambridgeshire.