'I had a 50% chance of survival - now I've retrained to work in schools'

Sheri Beecroft qualified in teaching while recovering from a brain condition

Barnsley is one of nine areas chosen by the government for a pilot scheme to encourage people on sickness benefits to return to employment. Work and Pensions Secretary Liz Kendall's visit to launch a new hub saw her hear the stories of those who have battled ill health but want to find a fulfilling job.

It was the success of the council's existing adult skills and community learning programme that helped Barnsley be selected for the scheme, which comes with £18m of funding and will see the NHS work with jobseekers with serious medical needs to stop them falling out of the workforce completely.

Among those who have already returned to work after being supported by the council's adult skills and community learning team is teaching assistant Sheri Beecroft.

She was given a 50% chance of survival after developing a serious brain condition and studied to retrain while she was being treated.

'I panicked'

Ms Beecroft had taken several years out of employment to raise her children, now aged 10 and eight, and decided to retrain as a teaching assistant.

She was juggling a part-time job as a childminder while studying when she became seriously ill.

She said: "I went into hospital and they found a large mass in the main part of my brain.

"The doctors told me that I had a 50% chance of surviving.

"It was right on the main artery pumping blood to my brain, so they wouldn't touch it. It was a waiting game.

"I was in hospital for a few weeks and panicked because I didn't know whether I was going to live or not.

"I had two small children but also I had started to do a course and I needed to finish it."

Ms Beecroft said her tutor from the Barnsley Council scheme was "amazing".

She said: "She would ring to check how I was and tell me to rest and one of the biggest supports was having someone rooting for my mental health and wellbeing."

Now working at Thurgoland Primary School, Ms Beecroft said: "I work in the classroom and the school office and I've gone on to do my special educational needs and disabilities course.

"When I went back to work after being ill, I needed a lot of MRI scans but there was never any problem about me taking that time off, school were very supportive."

A back injury has forced Tim Purcell to reconsider his career

The adult skills and community learning team also helped Tim Purcell, who has been on sick leave from work since July 2024 with a spinal condition.

"One day at work my back just seized up and it was a herniated disc, I couldn't move my torso," he said.

"I really struggled even putting my socks on, everything was difficult.

"It put a burden on everything, from finances to my mental health, as I realised I had these limitations."

As Tim, 38, recovered he realised he may not be able to return to manual work so he started studying for his GCSEs and hopes to continue to A Levels.

"I struggled at school and when I left I went to work in warehouses but I have to reassess my job now," he said.

"The major worry is my nerve gets destroyed which would mean being in a wheelchair so I have to think carefully about what kind of job I want to do.

"My recovery is very slow but I have a new level of excitement and confidence.

"I'm more excited about the future than I've been for a very long time.

"I would like to consider teaching but I'm just trying to acquire as many skills as I can."

As part of her visit, Ms Kendall said people "deserved to benefit from the security and dignity that good work affords".

Almost 40,000 people are out of work in the Barnsley area, according to a report prepared for the council.

In the borough, 42% of working-age adults are economically inactive due to long-term sickness or disability, compared with 26% nationally.

The new hubs will be rolled out to West and North Yorkshire at a later date.

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