Congratulations to our Merton Supported Interns

Our Supported Interns based at Merton Council celebrated the successful completion of their programme at a special graduation event in the Council Chamber.

 

Nichola Headings Project Officer for Supported Internships at Merton Council, congratulated the interns, saying “We have had an amazing team of young people this year, that have all just taken everything on board. I’m proud of each and everyone of you. You’ve all been on a journey and the main thing that stands out this year is that you have learnt to advocate for yourself which is extremely important.”

One of the interns spoke about what he had learnt on the programme. Kieran, said “Being on this internship has taught me a lot about working and how to conduct myself in the workplace. It has given me confidence to face challenges and shown me it is okay not to have the answers straight away. I have learnt that asking for support isn’t a weakness but is how we grow.

Working with this year’s interns has also shown me that everyone is capable of achieving great things when they put their minds to it. We all had different strengths, different challenges, different goals but we have all supported each other along the way.

As we celebrate today, I want to thank everyone who has helped us get here, the staff, the mentors and the families.

Believe in yourself, don’t be afraid to ask for help and keep pushing forward even when things are difficult, you are capable of a lot more than you think.”

Another intern spoke about his personal journey. Daniel said: “When I first started the internship, I was very nervous and lacked confidence. Over the year the team has helped me believe in myself and develop the skills I will now use for the rest of my life.

I would like to thank everyone for the support they have given me. They helped me prepare for interviews by doing mock interviews with me, by giving me advice and helping me improve my answers. They even came with me to the interviews which made me feel much more confident and supported.

Because of all the help and encouragement I received, I was able to secure a job with C4 which was a huge achievement for me and I would not have been able to do it without the support of the team and everyone who believed in me.

After the formal ceremony attended by family, friends and mentors, there was plenty of time for photos and celebrations.

Good luck to the Merton Supported Interns Class of 2026!