Robert, a former steel worker, said: 鈥淚 was made redundant from my production job at a local steel mill and was transferred to work in the mill鈥檚 health centre. I worked there for a year as a medic when I saw the advert for the Operating Department Practice course and I applied straight away. It was a big change for me to leave work and come back into full-time education, especially as I didn鈥檛 really work that hard in school! It鈥檚 a very friendly environment. We get a lot of support from the staff and you can always ask for help if you鈥檙e struggling with anything at all. I鈥檝e enjoyed it a lot and I can鈥檛 wait for the second year.鈥�
Robert, who is intending to work locally when qualified, is married to Julie, a qualified nurse and health visitor.