When Kirsti Bonthrone answered a job advert on indeed.co.uk for a support worker at ASC, little did she know she would find her vocation.
Kirsti had wanted to go into social care ever since having a social worker herself in her youth. “She completely changed my life for the better. Everything I’ve accomplished so far has been because of her,” says Kirsti, who had struggled with anxiety growing up.
Gaining the social worker’s support and growing her own confidence as a result made Kirsti consider working in care, and she knew that being a support worker at ASC was a great first step towards that. ASC, based in Balbeggie, Perthshire, specialises in adults with learning disabilities and challenging behaviour.
A year after starting work there, Kirsti, 24, knew she had found her vocation. “It has inspired me to go into adult nursing. I like the service users, as we call them, so much and I can relate to them. They just need that little more help to achieve quality of life.”
Even on her hardest days at work, Kirsti says she knows she’s in the right profession. “I could have the worst, most challenging day but I always want to come back. It’s not just the service users who are inspiring, the staff are too, and they’re very supportive. Working here has changed my life.”
Now studying for an HNC in social science, Kirsti is on her way towards not just fulfilling a dream but following in her own social worker’s footsteps and changing people’s lives for the better.