Naturally there comes a time when every process we undertake through our lives concludes - and after two years of hard work awaiting exam results and having no more essays to complete signified the end of our training. For me two years had flown by, and whilst I can still vividly remember the interview process and my first day with the Probation Service, even as I write this I cannot believe that two years had elapsed in the blink of an eye.
For me this period of training had certainly equipped me with a host of new skills, a new knowledge base and an ability to carve out a career. I can always remember a footballer given an interview and stating that he was nearing retirement....at the grand old age of thirty years old.....he pointed out that most people have established a career for themselves by that age, yet for him his career was over. Whilst im sure that this guy had made plenty of money through his career, and no doubt he went on to earn more money through media work, what he had said had struck a chord with me. I had managed to complete my training and was now equppied to commence a set career path prior to reaching that 30 year limit.
Undertaking the training was not too disimilar from my years at university - afterall there were a large number of trainees in my area and we had all bonded well over the two years. The end of training signified the end of an era - people moved on to different office locations, different jobs even...and we no longer had the academic side of work - it was now all about caseload and continuing professional development as an individual, within your team and within the organisation as a whole. Speaking personally, from commencing to completing the traineeship I felt that I had changed and matured significantly as a person and developed as a professional.
So what am I left with from my trainee years.....memories (of course), contact with old colleagues/friends (yes) and not too long ago I collected my personal file held by my Practice Development Assessor (PDA). She had contacted me to inform me that it was 'taking up too much space,' and 'could I collect it' - so I did. I have included some of the material in this arena, which in a way mirrors a further section within this website of the records kept on me by the Social Services.
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NPS Records
