Thinking of a career change? Meet Team Leader Harry Frankland, who came from a business background

Harry Frankland started his thriving career in support to open his “eyes into the world of people” and learn more about himself and the world.  

Harry has been working for Lifeways for just under 2 years. Despite no previous experience in the support sector, he got the role due to his drive and transferable business skills.

He started as a Support Worker and was recently promoted to Team Leader in December 2020, where he leads a team of 15 colleagues across 2 services.  

Before kickstarting his career in support, Harry went to Brighton MET college and completed a diploma in Business Management, while working as a part-time waiter at a pub.

Opening eyes

Once he left college, he went on to Brighton University to study a bachelor’s degree in Business Management with Marketing. However, he dropped out of the second year after believing it wasn’t for him.

Instead, Harry decided to go into support - mainly just to open his eyes to the world of people, especially young adults, who were the same age as him.  

“I enjoyed working as a Support Worker as the role was very fulfilling,” says Harry.

“Being out in the community with the service users was amazing, and I’ve learned more in the last 2 years than I ever did at school or university! The teams and management here is also a blessing to work with, especially my new line manager.

“I had no previous support experience, but to be honest, you don’t need it! you have to dive in at the deep end, and although it can be tough, most of the time it’s wonderful. You learn so, so quickly, and with the right support and hard work you can get to where you want to be.”

Putting people at the heart

After being promoted as a Team Leader, Harry is responsible for overlooking the support provided across 2 services, striving to support individuals within the service by putting people we support at the heart of what he does.

“One of our service users is 56 years old and I spent a year and 8 months laughing with him nearly 3 times a week. We had exactly the same sense of humour! Through this, I made breakthroughs with him and our professional relationship got better and better. It’s not just a highlight from Lifeways, but meeting him is one of the highlights of my life.

‘Be genuine’

I enjoy the people here, service users and co-workers alike. I love the different types of staff I meet, from all different backgrounds and all walks of life. I’ve made a lot of friends in Brighton just from work alone. I have even moved in with one of my colleagues.

“The people we support also tend to light up my day when we have a breakthrough, or even just playing a game of Jenga. I wouldn’t belong in this kind of work if I didn’t come to work for the sole purpose of making people’s lives better. 

My advice for anyone looking to start a career in support and apply to Lifeways is to be genuine and set realistic goals for yourself. Also, just be yourself, be genuine, have a laugh, and be silly sometimes. Make this job fun for yourself and the individuals you support.”