Learner Profile - Luisa Pareja

Special Educational Needs

Cafe Project

Before joining the classes I was learning English at a local college.  I wanted to try other classes including art and computing and this was what appealed about studying here at the Macbeth Centre. I was keen to improve my skills on the computer and started on inclusive computing three years ago. Then I went on to do art classes.

My art skills have got better. I can’t do self-portraits yet but I like drawing, and have done still life work. I’m currently learning how to do pictures of animals including horses and cows. It is very hard to draw a picture as you need to concentrate, but I feel much better at doing this. When I show pictures to my tutor and Mum they both tell me they are impressed.

Last year I started in the Café project and this year I am doing pre-employment skills. The Café project is good. I enjoy cooking, and now help my Mum to bake cakes at home. You can improve your skills, and it helps you get better with cooking and customer service. I also serve customers at the Café project and really like this about the course.

The customer services work experience from the course has been useful to help with everyday dealing with people as this can be difficult. It has helped with my confidence; everyone has been very helpful and very kind.

Now I’ve started working three hours per week for a well-known retailer in High Street Kensington, dealing with shoes organisation, stock-filling, and am going to soon be working on the display. If I hadn’t done the Café project I might not have gone on to get experience in the retailer. It has helped me to do this.

I’ve made a nice little group of friends, they are all very kind and polite, and we all help each other. The best thing about the Macbeth Centre is the staff; the teachers are very nice and very helpful. If you have a problem, you can always speak to them.

The classes are good and I like them all; I also like fashion and am interested in clothes making. Next year, I’d definitely like to do art, and also more cooking (I like the nice big kitchen). I’d like to do the gardening project, if I have time, and maybe get a placement in gardening or a gardening centre.