Passing the time – with intent [Archive]

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tatsahdasaygo

10th June 2006, 10:24

Hi all,
I'm 'sponging' again. My fiancée is looking to have something to do for the period of waiting until she can get work here (6 months I believe). She's already had a 6 month visit last summer but when she (hopefully) arrives on a fiancée visa she would like something to occupy her time, i.e. work training or courses or the like. When she was here before she tried to enrol on a computer course but was told it was only for our friends from Europe(?). Does anyone know if it's possible to do these kind of things with no real status until the stipulations are met? Or is it a case of sit and wait.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Regards Paul

andypaul

10th June 2006, 11:45

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(tatsahdasay @ Jun 10 2006, 10:24 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
Hi all,
I'm 'sponging' again. My fiancée is looking to have something to do for the period of waiting until she can get work here (6 months I believe). She's already had a 6 month visit last summer but when she (hopefully) arrives on a fiancée visa she would like something to occupy her time, i.e. work training or courses or the like. When she was here before she tried to enrol on a computer course but was told it was only for our friends from Europe(?). Does anyone know if it's possible to do these kind of things with no real status until the stipulations are met? Or is it a case of sit and wait.
Thanks in advance for your help.
Regards Paul
[/b][/quote]

Some courses will ask for evidence than others. I can remeber on a course i took in 2005 at least three of the people had not been in the country more than a few years and although it said you had to bring id no one looked at it.

Local charity shops maybe able to help you, pop in and ask explain the situation and see if legally she can work there (your not getting paid but there maybe a reason she can't im not sure)

My Wife when she first got here asked in a local charity shop and they said she could but she had a spouse visa so was entitled to work from day one.

All the lady running the shop asked for was id (passport if i remeber correctly) and her contact details.

My Wife was only 21/22 at the time and most of the ladies were far older, but they made her most welcome and couldn't do enough to look after her. Phill ladies in most cases due to the nature of the normal family set up in phill can get on with people of most ages i have noticed far better than us westners.

The shopwork was useful as it gave her work experience and she dealt with the weird and wonderful british public. She already spoke good english but the shop work helped her with local sayings and slang, alos with accents from both the uk and abroad. She also met after Phills while working there who came in as customers style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif

Does a family member or friend have a company or somewhere she can shawdow some one? Not sure what the insurance implications would be. But kids from school do the same, so can't be to complicated/expensive as long as shes not paid.

Your Wife could also study for qualfications with professional exams such as a food handling course (useful for resturant and even food shop work), basic computer handling skills. The exams may cost 80 - 100 quid say but at least she will have a qualfication to show in six months time. My Wife and I looked into taking an exam in food handling but she got a job before we arranged it all.
Last week the company sent her on a course which everyone but her was either a supervisor or manager and apparently for many was a refresher course and the company has to ensure a certain amount of staff have the qualfication. We suspect the reason my Wife went with one other was because one of the supervisors is soon to leave her shop so fingers crossed style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/smile.gif .

Another qualfication worth looking at is first aid, st johns ambulance and the red cross both do courses. Im sure they cost money but when i did one with my company a few years back i know some people were paying to do as an enhancment to their CV.

Many Councills run basic English courses i presume realising that most requiring this service are not from the EU and only recently here.

Sorry just a random string of ideas and not sure if anything is useful for you.

Even if your wife gains a qualfication which is not useful for her future career, it shows she is keen to learn and improve in my view.

Admin

10th June 2006, 12:01

Plenty of Open University.....online course to do.

Plenty of money to be made on the Internet or gambling style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/Grin.gif

mupsuit

11th June 2006, 07:30

mrsfrivolity

11th June 2006, 11:11

You're right there, Mupsuit. I came here on a fiance visa and was not allowed to work until we got married and was given my Further Leave to Remain. Not sure about the courses though. I was so bored out of my wits that I took housecleaning jobs. It gave me an excuse to venture further than our back garden and put a bit of cash in my pocket!

From the words of the mighty Tesco..."Every little helps!" style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/BouncyHappy.gif

tatsahdasaygo

11th June 2006, 11:53

<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE(mrsfrivolity @ Jun 11 2006, 11:11 AM) Quoted post</div><div class='quotemain'>
You're right there, Mupsuit. I came here on a fiance visa and was not allowed to work until we got married and was given my Further Leave to Remain. Not sure about the courses though. I was so bored out of my wits that I took housecleaning jobs. It gave me an excuse to venture further than our back garden and put a bit of cash in my pocket!

From the words of the mighty Tesco..."Every little helps!" style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/BouncyHappy.gif
[/b][/quote]

Hi again,

I agree with mrsfrivolity, my original query was about opportunities to learn, maybe train for a future job, things to occupy the time, I realise paid employment is not possible for first six months. I wondered if anyone else had advice about what was possible in a similar vein to andypaul (above), it's ideas and possibilities I'm after, as I said in my post my fiancée has already been here for six months last summer/winter and she's already been through the place like a sparkling whirlwind style_emoticons/<#EMO_DIR#>/appl.gif and there's only so much cleaning one can do (at least that's what I tell myself when I do it).

Regards to all.