September Talk with Sadie Sharp from The Platform Project

September is here. It's the month when autumn officially arrives - the autumn equinox fell on September 22. What does this month hold for you and your business?

Today we're talking to Sadie Sharp who is managing director of The Platform Project. The project helps young people improve their employability prospects and boost their CV experiences through its youth led business internship projects. 

How has September shaped up for you? 

September is a busy month for us – we have opened up additional spaces on our internship development programme to support young people who have been unable to secure work or further education for a September start, so we’re busy signing new people up and filling our final spaces. 

What are your personal plans for this month? 

This month I am planning a big black tie birthday party for my 40th next month – I am looking forward to getting all my friends and family together for the first time in ages!! 

I’m also taking part in the “Steps4Kenya” fundraising project our interns are running for The Younite Foundation where I have been walking 50 miles in September to raise money to support three schools in Kenya. 

September is also known as ‘organic’ month – do you shop, dress, or behave with green ethics in mind? 

I have actually just sold my big 4x4 gas guzzling car for a little Smart car which is much more environmentally friendly…I’m not quite at the car free stage yet though! And I of course make sure all of my wine and chocolate is Fair Trade!

World Gratitude Day takes place this month – what are you grateful for at the moment?

World Gratitude Day this year is really pertinent for me because my life is so fundamentally different to what it was like before COVID19. I launched The Platform Project back in 2015 but it took me years to get it off the ground and for the first couple of years it was a very part time volunteer led project, so I was still having to run my consultancy business to pay my wage, travelling away most weeks and living out of a suitcase. 

I really liked the training and consulting I was doing, but I LOVED the opportunities that were presenting themselves as The Platform Project grew…I just wanted to immerse myself in it and it was hard to not be frustrated at my practical need to pay the bills at the same time! 

But since COVID19 the project has grown SO much I am now working pretty much full time in it to keep up with the growth. So I am incredibly grateful that I get to live every day doing something that I absolutely love. It definitely doesn’t feel like work!

Who are you grateful for at the moment? 

We have hired four young people to join the team as part of the Government Kickstarter scheme and they have been absolute superstars! I’m so inspired and humbled to see the effort and ingenuity that young people can put in when given the chance to hold a substantive role in their early careers, and they have made such a positive impact on the business. So I am particularly grateful to Phoebe, Cameron, Sophie and Joshua!

What are your hopes for business in general this year? 

We are expanding our internship programme to be able to support 100 young people this next year (September onwards) as the number of young people struggling to secure work post COVID has gone through the roof. 

We are also due to launch a virtual version of our internship programme so that young people across the country can follow the steps we take our interns through to boost their CV, skills and confidence to help them launch their careers. 

And if our growth continues as it has been this past four years (fingers crossed!), we should be on track by the end of the year to identify a second town / city to expand into…exciting times!

Have you got any events planned you’d like to shout about – either that you are running or attending? 

Next month we have a Celebration Showcase networking event where our interns are holding a mini-expo style event where they are showing off their project experiences and work ready skills to local employers looking for young talent, so email us at [email protected] if you would like to come and join us at the event. 

Have you got any services or special offers you’d like to mention? 

We have a handful of places still available for our employability internship programme, which is fully funded and results in 89% of our participants moving on to work, higher education or self-employment. 

So if you are a reading this as a parent of a young person who needs a bit of a helping hand to find their feet and launch their career, get in touch at [email protected]. 

And finally, as a bit of fun, September marks Teddy Bear Day? Do you have your childhood teddy bear – or are you a bit of a kid with ‘grown up’ teddy bears? 

Apparently I used to call my little brother Gizmo (from The Gremlins movie) when he was born because he had big ears and eyes, so my parents bought me a Gizmo teddy to keep (which apparently I much preferred). 35 years later and I still have that Gizmo teddy sat on a shelf in my lounge. 

For more information visit www.PlatformProject.co.uk.