Photo Documentary

(Images and Interview were taken following COVID-19 rules and regulations)

During this interview I may ask you questions as they apply on a personal level. Are you comfortable with this and are you willing to proceed?

Ifan - Yes!

What is your earliest memory?

It must have been, oh god when did Stuart Little come out? That must be it. I went on a trip with school to go and see Stuart Little 2. I remember I had some popcorn and I remember spilling the popcorn. I stayed for the entire credits because it was the first time I had been to the cinema and I thought that was what you were supposed to do! I can't remember much before then really.

Tell me about your childhood, what was your favourite memory?

Oh my god, my favourite memory from my entire childhood? That's a tough one. There's quite a lot to choose from and I wasn't really paying attention, to be honest!

What are the traditions that you have established in your family from your childhood?

One thing that was a tradition up until I was like 13, about a couple of days after school finished for the summer, we would go up to Pwllelli and we would take my Naini and there was a woman who rented out this farmhouse called Pensarn and every year we would stay up there for about a week with our dog, Jess. I remember when I was really little I would go to a park across the way and myself and my brother would go to the amusements (bumper cars and stuff like that). We stopped going eventually I'm not really sure why.

What is your profession or job?

I am a Learning Support Assistant in primary settings in multiple schools across Wales, either generally helping out with the whole class or working one-to-one with certain pupils.

Do you like your job?

Yes, I do! I wouldn't call it an easy job, there's good days and bad days and having a lot of patience seems to help. I find it to be a very rewarding job on the whole and I feel as though I make a difference in the kids lives and make their day-to-day lives easier

What did you want to be when you were growing up?

When I was doing my GCSE's my initial ambition was to leave school at the age of 16 and go to a catering college, I enjoyed doing catering in school. After I finished my exams I had second thoughts and felt as though if I left school at the age of 16 I wouldn't get too far in life, which I know sounds snobby but I felt as though I had to go to university.

One of the subjects I took during my A-levels was Media Studies. I ended up doing it and ended up going to University in Aberystwyth and I wanted to become a Cameraman working for the BBC or S4C. When I was attending University Open days I remember after my open day at the University of Salford I decided that this was where I wanted to go. I wanted this after seeing the amazing facilities they had on offer. But I didn't think I was good enough. After taking a scholarship exam I was offered a position on the Film and Media course at Aberystwyth University.

How did you get into this line of work?

I never thought I would end up doing what I am doing now, based on the fact that both of my parents are educators. I was introduced to a teaching agency through my best friend from school who found a job that was going on a job-seeking website. After he signed up to them he discussed with me the duties of the role and that piqued my interest. I then decided to pluck up the courage to go for it myself. After his first shift, I started getting second thoughts as he described it as being more difficult than we had expected, I prevailed however and I was offered the same position as he had been! although my first shift was somewhat challenging I was offered more shifts and eventually developed a pattern and found my self beginning to enjoy the role more and more. I found myself accepting work every chance I was offered and began building a rapport with the companies (as I was working for multiple teaching agencies at this time and still do to this day). The rest is history.

What are you proudest of (so far) in your career?

The proudest chapter of my career to date was when I was given the opportunity to be placed in the school that my mother actually works in! I was given placement in a special needs unit as an LSA which started off as being only two days a week but I began building more of a rapport and so I was offered more days in the week to work there. I thoroughly enjoyed my time with this class and got to know the pupils and staff very well and found it very difficult to leave when my time came. I hope that one day I could be given the opportunity to be placed with such an amazing class in the near future.

Who was/is the most influential person in your life?

The most influential person in my life right now I would say is my partner as he gives me the confidence I lack in order to achieve my goals.

How did you celebrate the holidays? Did your family have some special holiday traditions?

One tradition that my family tend to do is that the day before Christmas Eve, we used to do it all together but now it's more just my mum, to be honest. They tend to get up very early and drive to the nearest town to get all of the Christmas food together. And there is a lot of it! Usually, afterwards, we would go into some kind of cafe and have breakfast. And then on Christmas eve instead of buying a turkey from a supermarket, we would get one delivered from a local farmer, more of a family friend really. Always on Christmas Eve and it was one chonk of a bird.

What would be the most important values/traditions you would teach your own family?

One important value that I would like to pass down to my child/children is to try and put themselves in someone else's shoes before making judgement and to always be grateful no matter how small the gesture.

What was the happiest time in your adult life so far? Why?

The happiest time in my adult life so far would be when I met my partner and being able to plan a future with him gives me a great sense of hope as before I met my partner I felt like I really didn't have much to look forward to in later life.

Tell about a time when you didn’t know if you would make it.

One part of my life where I felt a great sense of anxiety and uncertainty was during my last year of school because I was terrified that I wouldn't get into University. I had no idea what I would do instead of that. This was also the case during my last year of University where I felt I was at my lowest. As I wasn't enjoying my course and had lost almost all interest in pursuing a career in the Media.

What was the hardest time? How did you get through it?

The hardest time I think I've ever been through was during the first two months of lockdown that was due to the pandemic. This was partly based on having to live in cramped living conditions with three other people so tensions were constantly high. I was also struggling financially and was increasingly reliant on my parents for financial help, which I sorely wish I never have to do again! This struggle was further increased due to me being put out of work as the schools closed which made me anxious financially and it made me depressed since I felt as though I was finally getting into my stride with my work and I felt it was unfairly cut short. On top of that, myself and my partner were going through difficulties in our relationship.

Eventually, I had no choice but to move back home which felt (initially) like I had been defeated and that I had failed. However, after a couple of weeks. I started feeling better about myself because I was given the opportunity, finally, to relax and not worry about so many things. The rest of my family were there with me which made us able to do things that we hadn't done in a very long time, this brought back memories of my childhood. My partner helped me through this difficult period and we eventually resolved our issues.

How would you want your loved ones to remember you?

I would want my loved ones to remember me as somebody who was thoughtful, who put other people ahead of himself and someone who was selfless.

Photography by - ACT.B Photography

Interviewer - Alec Blackwater

Interviewee - Ifan Jones