Like any 17-year-old, Ines Da Silva aspires to a bright future. However, finding herself NEET- Not in Education, Employment or Training – in 2017, Ines’ childhood dream of becoming a model seemed very far away. Feeling isolated and lacking direction, Ines bravely reached out to Jade Todd, an employment coach at YMCA Norfolk, for support.
Jade is employed by YMCA Norfolk as part of a local partnership project supporting young people experiencing barriers to work or education. When Jade met Ines and discovered her modelling aspirations, she was determined to help her follow her dreams.
As luck would have it, YMCA Norfolk were planning a charity fashion event with Jarrold, Norwich, which took place in April this year. Ines felt that volunteering to model in the fashion show at Jarrold was the perfect opportunity to not only build her confidence and get some valuable experience, but also to help raise awareness for YMCA Norfolk. Little did she know that this step in the right direction would lead to another amazing opportunity!
Local photographer Julia Holland met Ines when she photographed the Jarrold fashion show for YMCA Norfolk, and as a result, was inspired to offer her time and expertise to develop a starter portfolio for Ines. Jarrold were also on board, kindly offering to provide professional hair and make-up, as well as clothing, for a photoshoot, which took place at the YMCA Norfolk office at Exchange street, then out on the streets of the city.
Julia Holland said: “It was wonderful to see how Ines grew in confidence during the fashion show, and I wanted to offer more help in her potential modelling career, so a portfolio starter shoot seemed like a great way of supporting her future dreams.”
Carole Slaughter, Marketing Manager at Jarrold, said: “Jarrold are very pleased to have been able to help Ines with clothes, hair and make up for her photoshoot – the results of which are outstanding and we hope a great start to her portfolio’
Ines was thrilled with the results of the photoshoot, saying: “I never thought one of my dreams would actually come true. I’m very grateful – I was supposed to find a job, but I guess I found a dream job… I guess if you start believing in yourself and start getting the help that you need you might get what you always wanted.”
Pictured above is Ines Da Silva, styled by Jarrold. Picture: Julia Holland