A cool-headed Lanarkshire teenager’s “bright, curious mind” has so impressed a firm of family funeral directors that they’ve made her one of the country’s youngest trainee undertakers.
Seventeen-year-old Ellie Scott admits she “just didn’t get school,” had become disengaged with learning, and faced an uncertain future in the world of work.
But when her pupil support teacher matched her with South Lanarkshire Council’s youth employability service, Aspire, it set her on an unconventional career path for a young person – and a role within the funeral industry that was created especially for her.
It was during an initial meeting with Aspire key worker, Debbie Taggart, that Calderglen High school-leaver Ellie revealed she held a long-harboured ambition to work in the funeral industry – and that was enough to trigger a tentative enquiry from Debbie to local funeral director, Fosters, in Rutherglen.
Following a successful interview and week of work placement, Ellie was offered a permanent job, launching her on to a promising career path she describes as “a privilege”.
Demonstrating a maturity that defies her years, knowledge-hungry Ellie is now applying herself to the practical tasks of the job, while her “rationality, cool head and warm heart” bring to the role qualities that employers like Fosters rarely see in 17-year-old school-leavers.
Ellie, of East Kilbride, explained: “When I first met Debbie, I told her I really liked the idea of having such an important part in a family’s life at such a challenging time.
"I think she was surprised that a young person wanted to do this, but when she saw how keen I was, she just ran with it.
"I couldn’t believe it when, a week later, she told me there was a meeting lined up with Fosters.”
Although she admits to being terrified at the prospect of an interview, Ellie took it in her stride, impressing the team so much with her pragmatism and maturity that the company created a role just for her.
Fosters managing director, Nick McLaughlin, admitted he knew the company was taking a risk by investing in someone so young.
“Working in the funeral industry is an uncommon choice for young people at the beginning of their careers,” said Nick.
“It is often veiled in mystery and stereotype, especially for those who have yet to experience loss in their own lives.
"It requires maturity, rationality, a cool head, and a warm heart – not qualities some would expect to be present in many 17-year-olds.
“So, it would not be unexpected to have misgivings about introducing a young person into a world where the odds of them being successful would seem low.
“We were unsure how our customers, experiencing a deep sense of loss and other visceral and complex emotions, might respond. We worried about the more practical aspect of working in the funeral industry – specifically, how a young person might react to being exposed to deceased persons, and their ability to assimilate to the tasks needed.
“But, in Ellie, the Aspire programme found a bright, curious mind with a level-headed nature and paired her with Fosters. We have found that Ellie has translated perfectly to this industry and our own culture.
"With careful monitoring and mitigations to ensure Ellie’s welfare, we have found her to be a diligent, dedicated, and hard-working colleague. We couldn’t be more delighted for her.”
Modestly, Ellie credits Debbie and the Aspire team for helping her each step of the way and opening doors she feared would be closed to a 17-year-old who “just didn’t get school.”
“I would say to anyone who gets to 5th or 6th year and who still isn’t enjoying school to definitely take the option of a meeting with Aspire,” advised Ellie.
“I am doing things I never thought I could. After just seven months in the job, I can’t imagine wanting to do anything else. It’s a privilege and it’s all down to Aspire and Fosters for both taking a chance on me.”
For Debbie and her colleagues at Aspire, it really is all in a day’s work.
“The role that we play in supporting young people into positive destinations is different with everyone we work with,” explained Debbie.
“In Ellie’s case, she had the spark and the determination, and my job was to help create the opportunity as, to date, this was an industry with which we hadn’t worked.
“I have to say that I was delighted when I reached out to Fosters at how open they were to take what was potentially a big gamble on a young person in what might be considered an unusual career aspiration.
“But both they, and Ellie, have been phenomenal – so much so that, at the end of a successful work experience week, Fosters offered her a permanent job on the spot. For everyone involved, it has been such a rewarding and inspirational journey.”
Rob Milligan, youth employability lead at Aspire, explained that every young person with whom his team works brings new challenges, successes, and experiences – and none more so than in Ellie’s case.
He said: “Aspire has links with all of South Lanarkshire’s secondary schools and we meet hundreds of young people each year, often when things are not going so well in their lives.
"They might struggle with school or have become disillusioned with learning completely.
“It’s our job to look at each and every situation on its own merits and, while we have a network of businesses and employers we work with, we always have to be ready to think creatively, as Debbie has done in reaching out to Fosters for Ellie.
“Working with young people can be demanding and challenging, but so inspirational.
And, for Ellie, we were all blown away with the determination, commitment, and maturity she has shown.
“Our job is essentially to create a level playing field for the young people we work with, to be an advocate for those already full of potential, and supporting them to take that next step.
“Making a difference is hugely rewarding, but when someone like Ellie comes along and the hard work of all involved pays off so successfully, there is nothing like it.”
And at Fosters, managing director Nick is keen that Ellie’s story inspires other organisations to take the same leap of faith.
“I would encourage other firms to consider working with Aspire, who have taken great care to find the right person to work in the right industry,” he said.
“While Fosters and Aspire – particularly Ellie’s key worker Debbie – have played a role in facilitating a new career for a young person, the success is down to Ellie.
“Ellie has demonstrated to her colleagues and to me that, when given the opportunity, the proper support, and an encouraging word, it’s not always about the experience a candidate has, but their attitude.”
For more information about Aspire, visit www.southlanarkshire.gov.uk/mybrighterfuture
