Jasmine was on placement at Bonnie’s since just before Covid-19 restrictions commenced. Here she shares some of her experiences.

I had a range of emotions when starting at Bonnie’s. There was a bit of excitement about going into a new learning experience and at the same time, there was the general nervousness that you get when starting something new. On my first few day, I was warmly welcomed by everyone at Bonnie’s which helped me settle in and feel part of the team quite quickly.

I was lucky enough to begin placement prior to Covid-19 which gave me an opportunity to be a part of the Creative Space and Kids Space programs before they had to be cancelled for some time. It was challenging to be on placement during the pandemic. However I did continue to receive support from the staff that were supervising me which enabled me to continue my learning. Over this time, I witnessed the different ways in which Bonnie’s adapted to the new guidelines put in place due to the pandemic. The team strived to maintain the same quality of support to its clients when face-to-face support needed to be kept to a minimum. And they did this so well.

When the social restrictions eased, things started to pick up again which allowed me to get involved in more aspects of casework, increasing my learning opportunities. I was present in a number of meetings with various women that had come to Bonnie’s,(both over the phone and face-to-face). I have also been part of several client meetings with the family workers at Bonnie’s. This has given me a greater insight and understanding of the different stages of casework and support that is involved when working with the women here.

Overall, my placement experience has been an interesting one and a learning experience that I will carry with me. It has been a learning experience that has definitely developed my knowledge and skills for future practice. I have seen how the team members at Bonnie’s work to great lengths to ensure that they provide quality support to the women here. And that will stay with me in all of my future work.

Written by Jasmine, Photo by Laika Notebooks on Unsplash