Steven

Steven began our service in August 2023 and over 15 months developed his skills as a barista in our individualised and intensive barista skills capacity building program. Our highly skilled mentor with extensive barista experience and a double degree in social sciences and psychological sciences empowered him to make a great coffee on our manual barista machine, in a way that worked for Steven. He has developed his knowledge and skills in espresso theory, milk texturing, latte art, food safety, machine maintenance. He can make the full range of typical warm beverages on offer at any cafe using cow’s milk and alternative milks. In a very small group setting he also developed his employability skills to work with others including the art of small talk while taking coffee orders using our point of sale system.

As his confidence grew, we linked him to multiple work experiences and paid barista work to further build and test his readiness in industry conditions.

Working Collaboratively with our DES partnership

When Steven was ready to transition into open employment, we invited our DES partner Multiple Solutions to work with our career development service to find a role that would be a great fit for him. Through our partnership, we were able to convey our deep understanding of what a great job for him would look like and how he could be set up for success.

His Multiple Solutions Business Development Manager identified a barista and team leader role at a reputable ice creamery. The result of this partnership is that Steven feels at home in his barista role and confident about his working future. These collaborative approaches to supporting young people back into employment are vital. This model result.