Kayla is nineteen and currently supported by our Scottish Borders branch. Living with dyspraxia she has had to overcome many struggles and obstacles to achieve her goals. But through determination and hard work Kayla has managed to make some excellent progress on her goal of one day going to study nursing at university. Cornerstone has been helping to support Kayla in her dream and Kayla’s support worker, Julia has helped her apply for jobs, and made sure she knew her rights.

Kayla began searching for a job in early 2021 which was incredibly difficult during the pandemic. There weren't many jobs available, and Kayla found it hard to find jobs that didn’t require work experience. Additionally, the interviews she was selected for were conducted over Zoom which she found strange and awkward. Meeting people online for the first time instead of face to face was a real challenge.

Fortunately, through perseverance and a few awkward Zoom interviews, Kayla finally found employment as a carer, supporting clients in their own homes. Kayla enjoyed that role but has since started a new job with better hours. She is currently working night shifts in a care home.

Kayla has also moved into a new flat and has begun studying towards a National 5 qualification in Child Health and Social Care at college. She enjoys having the opportunity to learn new things and her favourite part so far is studying behavioural learning theories. She finds it really fascinating and in December 2021 passed her first assessment with flying colours. Kayla says that doing so amazingly well in her first attempt was her proudest achievement of 2021!

These accomplishments have filled her with confidence in her dream of becoming a learning disability nurse.

Kayla’s interest in nursing stems from being unable to get the help she needed in school. It took quite a long time before she received her diagnosis of dyspraxia and Kayla would like to help others and ensure they do not struggle like she did.

In recognition of Kayla's amazing achievements, she was named as one of the winners of Cornerstone’s Mary Williamson Awards and presented with a £250 prize. Originally Kayla was going to use the money to buy a bookcase and a chest of drawers for her new flat but has instead decided to use it for a new mattress so she can sleep better.

We wish Kayla the best of luck as she continues her studies and pursues her dream!

If you would like to read more stories from the people we support you can click here.