Laura Lee enrolled on the Preparing to Run Your Own Business course after the company she had worked for as Finance Manager was forced to make her redundant in March 2011. She carried out research online into the various avenues that were open to her as a self-employed businesswoman and sought help from her job centre advisor before signing up for the Level 2 certificate. Laura says,

“I enjoyed the course. It provided a recap on some of the basics of business, which may have been new to some learners. But where I really benefitted was the business plan. The way the course was structured made it incredibly easy to put together. I had always thought that this was a complicated and time-consuming process but I found that I’d done it almost without realising.”

With a plan of action in place, Laura has already made huge strides with her company Laura Lee Bookkeeping. She has taken on a design company, a painter and decorator, a recording studio and retail shop as clients and, with a website on the way (www.lauraleebookkeeping.com), she hopes that she’ll be adding to that list soon:

“I’m currently speaking with a make-up artist and estate agents to add to my portfolio. Ideally, I’d like to take on more work with creative people. I enjoy working with companies who have that creative edge.”

Laura is also quick to point to the value of having the support of a mentor when setting up an enterprise:

“I have a mentor who runs her own accountancy firm. She also works from home and likes to work with similar clients so I respect the advice that a businesswoman like that can give me. Also, having someone like Emma on hand is great for networking – we can share ideas and pass recommendations each other’s way.”

It seems that Laura is now not only prepared to run her own business; she’s put it into practice and is already well on the way to making it a success.

For more information on the Level 2 Certificate in Preparing to Run Your Own Business, or any of the other SFEDI qualifications available see the SFEDI qualifications page.

Jason Major completed the SFEDI Awards Level 2 Certificate in Preparing To Run Your Own Business at The Sheffield College in November 2011.

Jason worked in the USA for ten years as a graphic designer for many industries particularly Local Government, Healthcare, charities and small businesses before returning to the UK to have a go at setting up his own graphic design business in his hometown of Sheffield.

He found out about the course by seeing an advert in the Sheffield Star and thought it would be great way for him to understand the processes involved in setting up a business. He says, “The course is fantastic and covers everything you need to know to get up and running”.

When asked how the course had changed the way he felt about setting up a business, he says, “I feel a lot more confident about setting up the business now. The course lets you see if your business idea is viable before you even start. The course teaches you the formula of starting up a new business and how to ensure it is successful”.

Jason’s business, Major Major, has now launched and already has an impressive portfolio.

Lauren Hart completed the SFEDI Awards Level 2 Certificate in Preparing To Run Your Own Business at The Sheffield College.

Another arts based business to come out of the course is from Lauren, aged 26. Lauren has had the idea for her business for a long time, but felt she was lacking the skills and confidence to take the leap. When she saw the Preparing to Run Your Own Business course on The Sheffield College’s website¸ she knew this could help to develop her idea.

Lauren was working part time in a pub whilst also performing unpaid in a local community theatre production at the Crucible Theatre when she first started work on setting up her own theatre company called (For) As Long As Love Lasts. The company aims to work as an ensemble that will create performances collaboratively from scratch.

The work will be presented both at professional venues and non traditional performance spaces throughout the UK and internationally. She explained: “I am passionate and motivated by using theatre as a tool to change society. I have loved theatre since my first drama lesson when I was 11. I went onto studying performing arts at college, a drama degree at university and a masters in contemporary theatre at drama school. I decided after working as actor for other theatre companies that I wanted to share my own ideas with the world and I want to change society in a fundamental way. I aim to do outreach work alongside my performances in order to use my skills to help others.”

The course has helped Lauren get a better understanding of the areas she’s less interested in like book keeping and she still want aims to get more training from the Inland Revenue so she can assess how it will work financially. When asked if she would have started a business without this training, she said: “No, I think I would have always needed to be guided in certain aspects of business in order to know how to set it up. The advice from the tutor and other students has been a great help to me.”

Ally Makin completed the SFEDI Awards Level 2 Certificate in Preparing To Run Your Own Business at The Sheffield College.

Single mother-of-three Ally, 45, found out about the course from Jobcentre Plus after she had been on benefits for 36 months. Ally said:

“I was running my business on a trial basis with support from the job centre and I thought that I was ready to go it alone and get off benefits completely.

“They told me about the course and it sounded perfect, and with free childcare at the college available for my three-year-old, I knew that it could become a reality. It really gave me the tools to succeed, improved my confidence and introduced
me to lots of other people in the same position.”

Now Ally is aiming to optimise her website www.allysgiftshop.co.uk and further develop the gift shop parties side of the business, which she launched to bring the products direct to the customer.

She added: “The training has meant the difference between the business succeeding or not. It’s helped me gain the knowledge and confidence to make it a success. I really wanted my children to see that there was more to their mum
than someone at home on benefits. My 16-year-old daughter is aiming to go to university to train to be an architect. Now I really feel I can support her goals and inspire her to succeed.”

Lesley Hollingworth completed the SFEDI Awards Level 2 Certificate in Preparing To Run Your Own Business at The Sheffield College.

When asked what life was like before the course, Lesley, 43, said: “I was sick in bed! A serious back problem meant that I had lost my previous job of 10 years, after over two years off sick. I had been working under the Government’s ‘Permitted Work Scheme’ for 10 hours a week as a freelance artist.”

She added: “I knew the course would be perfect as, although I had the ideas, I needed the real knowledge to apply to my ideas. Also, as I have mild learning disabilities, I felt the extra support I would get in a college environment would help me that much more.”

Lesley runs a mobile art and craft gallery targeted at the mainstream Christian market. Following the course, she is taking her business to all of the market’s major events throughout the UK in 2012 and developing an online shop. She’s also launched a mobile temporary tattoo and nail art bar that goes to local events, festivals and children’s parties.

Lesley started the business, she explained, as part of her therapy and received great feedback about her work. She added: “Due to my circumstances, I knew I could not return to a normal pattern of work, so I took a long hard look at what else I could achieve. The arts have always been my passion and as someone involved in the Christian community I noticed that there seemed to be a gap in the market for a fresh modern approach to the creative arts.”

Lesley thinks she still would have given the business a go without the training, but she admitted: “It would have been flawed by my weaknesses and the fear may well have got to me. The eight-week course has helped me look at my idea from every angle and now I feel confident that I am being realistic about it and not just getting carried away with a nice idea. The combination of material and tutor training was invaluable.”

Louise Reader completed the SFEDI Awards Level 2 Certificate in Preparing To Run Your Own Business at The Sheffield College.

Full time mum, Louise, 31, joined the course when she saw it advertised in her
local paper. She was interested in starting a hair and beauty salon with a small coffee
shop, childcare facilities and pamper parties, but didn’t know where to start until she
joined the course.

She said: “The course has given me more knowledge and insight into the things
involved when running your own business. I also have support available to me at the
college from business mentor Joe Bolton.” When asked whether she would have
progressed her idea without the course she added: “I don’t think so. I feel that without the help of this course I would have remained stagnant. After finishing the course I will try to concentrate on the most important things I need to do to get my business up and running.”