DCG Success Stories

Returning to college to take English and maths functional skills courses has allowed busy mum Gemma Sidsaff to do something just for herself.  

Gemma has caring responsibilities at home as well as two young sons – one of whom is autistic – so she doesn’t get much spare time.  

But after both boys started school, she decided to return to education – with an end goal of one day working with people with learning disabilities.  

She enrolled at Derby College Group’s Ilkeston college last year and started to study English, she has returned this year and is now studying Functional Skills English and maths, with the intention of progressing to GCSEs in the future.  

She said: “I go into college two mornings a week. The maths is a struggle but I’m determined to do it – I like a challenge.  

“I also like the social side. I’ve made friends and it’s nice to be me for a while as well as mummy.  

“Our tutors are lovely. Last year, when my mother-in-law who has since passed away was in a care home, I sometimes had to leave class at short notice but the teaching staff were so supportive.  

“They’d also give me a little bit longer to finish my work. It’s also good that I qualified for the Adult Skills Fund.  

“As I’m a carer at home I can’t go out to work at the moment. If my course hadn’t been free, I probably wouldn’t have been able to go back to college.”  

The Adult Skills Fund, run by the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), supports adults to get the skills and training they need to progress into an apprenticeship or further learning.  

Gemma has a background in social care, having worked in a dementia care home and as a support worker to people with learning disabilities for 10 years. 

She said: “I loved my support worker role – it’s one of the best jobs I’ve had and I’d love to go back to it one day.  

“I didn’t do that well at school but I’m pleased to be learning now. I was helping my nine year old son with his times tables the other day and he told me how I proud he was of me for going back to college. That was a special moment.