Post #77: Post Diagnosis - How It Affects Any Hope Of Any Kind Of Future Career Prospects

*Stop Press: He Replied ...*

I'm annoyed, I really am. Why? Well, two weeks ago I attended an introductory session with a company called Resources Plus who are a company contracted to work on behalf of the London Borough I reside in.  Their main objective seems to centre around getting people back to work, or to find better quality employment in their particular field of expertise, providing training and support, where necessary.  The contact, whom I won't name here, won't acknowledge nor respond to the two emails I sent him. The first one provided an electronic copy of my CV and explained, in some detail, my personal situation; the second was a request to defer the 1to1 appointment we'd arranged during the introductory session.  I sent him another email today stating that if I do not hear back from him within three working days that I'll be taking the matter up with the Local Authority under the auspices of the Equality Act 2010.

I attended a parents' support group this morning and the discussion touched upon whether adults should seek a diagnosis and if so, would it affect their future career prospects.  I did and look what happened to me.  Bitter?  Yep.

Post #75: Resources Plus Covering Letter

This is a redacted version of the covering letter I sent to my contact in Resources Plus (a council-funded scheme to get people off of the unemployment statistics/find new jobs etc ...)

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Hi [Name]

It was great to meet you last Tuesday and thank you for providing an overview of the work of Resources Plus.  As requested, I attach a copy of my CV, which, quite frankly is geared towards my previous career as a civil servant.  I'll flesh out the details a little more on xxxx, but basically, I was diagnosed with Asperger Syndrome last year following years of issues at work and in my personal life.  The knowledge that I do have the condition and how it limits everything has made it almost impossible for me to seek a suitable role.  I took voluntary redundancy in April after twenty-one years of working in the public sector - the highest grade I achieved was Higher/Senior Executive Officer.

I have attempted to obtain public service Agency Work, via Brook Street back in August and more recently, Adecco.  Brook Street put an awful lot of pressure on me to accept a totally unsuitable role, which included working in awful conditions with xxxxxxxxxxx.  I quit after seven days.  I'd ideally like to work part-time and flexibly, but no employer seems to be able to facilitate that.  Although I registered with Adecco back in September, I never heard back from them, despite their hollow promise that 'I had been fast tracked to the top of their temp list ...'

With all of this behind me, it's clear to me why I'm so disillusioned.  Also, any paid employment I obtain could affect the level of Disability Living Allowance I obtain on behalf of my son, who has Autism and ADHD.  In addition, my husband is a secondary carer for his Mother, who has dementia and lives in a residential home, and his Brother, who has profound learning difficulties, who resides in a different one.  This is the main reason why we both left successful careers in the Civil Service.  

All the best

Faspie