Resettlement Success: From Leading Medical Assistant (Submarines) to Health and Safety Manager with LiveWest Homes

Category: Success Stories Publish date: 30/08/2018

Paul served as a Submariner Medic for 10 years. He now works at the Health and Safety Manager for LiveWest Homes, a leading developer of affordable and social housing in the South West who operate from the shores of Cornwall to the Gloucestershire hills.

Tell us briefly about your career so far (including your Service career)

"I am a Chartered Safety Practitioner and have been managing Health and Safety full-time for the past 15 years. In that time I have worked across a number of industries, mainly construction. I served in the Royal Navy as a Medic on nuclear submarines for the best part of a decade between 1991 – 2000."

In your civilian role, what training, experience and/or qualification gained while serving have you found most useful?

"The qualifications I gained whilst serving have been of little use to me, although they did give me a great start in civilian life (City & Guilds in Radiation Safety Practice and my HGV licence). It’s the skills regarding how to conduct yourself and being able to talk to people as individuals or in a group environment that I found most useful. The skills regarding how to be part of a team, punctuality, resourcefulness and being able to understand and carry out instructions were also very important and have served me well."

When you left the Service life, how did you choose your civilian career?

"It almost chose me to be fair. I looked at the industry as a whole and spoke to many people outside of the Armed Forces, and they said that health and safety was definitely the career to be in, as Service leavers tend to be a good fit for this career. It seemed to fit with my medical and nuclear safety experience within the RN and so I found myself doing my NEBOSH General Certificate! Amazingly, I passed it!"

What obstacles did you have to overcome and how did you overcome them?

"First of all, there was the obstacle of actually finding a job in health and safety. Employers weren’t interested due to my lack of experience in the health and safety field. There weren’t junior positions or mentoring schemes available back then as there are now.

"I had to use other skills gained whilst serving, such as my Radiation Safety qualification and HGV licence to get a job and then develop skills to fit within the health and safety world. It was about learning what I needed to develop and the skills I needed to possess in order to land the career I wanted. It took me 2.5 years to finally get a job in health and safety properly.

"The single biggest obstacle to overcome was the integration into civilian life. The sense of humour barrier was huge! The things you used to be able to say in close quarters to similar ranks and rates whilst serving that just wouldn’t wash in civilian life. It took me the best part of 12 years to understand how to conduct myself properly within civilian employment having suffered a number of falls along the way. Military sense of humour definitely has a place, but it’s usually best saved for the pub with like-minded people! Only other ex-military persons will understand this.

"The upward management of people in civilian life was also a huge obstacle. In the military, it’s 'yes sir', 'no sir', but in civilian life that doesn’t always work and it certainly isn’t always respected. A previous director of mine taught me how to upwardly manage more senior persons. Another director taught me how to communicate in writing properly without showing my emotions (a very military trait). It has been a steep learning curve for me but I honestly believe I am the most professional and upstanding person I have ever been."

What is your job at LiveWest Homes and what skills that you gained in the military do you use?

"I am the Health and Safety Manager for LiveWest Homes and I use all the skills I have mentioned above on a daily basis. These are all skills that I was taught and developed whilst in the Armed Forces that will never leave me and every day I am thankful for my time in the military as it enables me to produce great results.

"There has been a lot of professional learning to do my job and to do it well but I also learned how to study, how to learn and how to apply my knowledge within the Royal Navy. I wouldn’t have been able to fulfill my duties if I didn’t!"

What advice would you give other Service leavers?

"Always have faith in your abilities and experiences. You have plenty of transferable skills that employers are looking for and never sell yourself short.

"The one thing about having served in the Armed Forces is that we are never afraid to ask for something or ask someone else if we don’t know and this is a skill that will serve every Service leaver very well indeed.

"The sky is always the limit and anything is achievable."