Anne-Marie Littlewood

Anne-Marie Littlewood from Oldham is a self-employed weight management consultant to Rosemary Conley Diet and Fitness Clubs Ltd.

Previously a franchisee, with a business in Greater Manchester and West Yorkshire, she’d started doing a Nutrition diploma through the Rosemary Conley clubs, which was validated by University of Chester. She then decided to take her study further, to a degree, using Learning through Work:

“I always wanted to study again for a degree, but never really found a subject I particularly wanted to study. I wanted my next career step to be doing fewer exercise classes and more support work and Learning through Work seemed the perfect way to achieve that. Doing a degree while working, being able to pay for it as you go along, and using it later in life to work as a support consultant is my ideal. I also wanted to prove to myself that I could do it!”

The flexibility of Learning through Work made it easy for Anne-Marie to fit it in around other commitments.  “Learning through Work allows you to set your own timescales and your own studying routine. You can also tailor your course around what you want to use it for, so it applies directly to your job. It isn’t study for study’s sake, it’s study with a purpose. I didn’t see the point of doing something that I couldn’t then use.”

And with Learning through Work there are usually no exams:
“I find it harder to retain facts than I did when I was younger, so Learning through Work is great for me – you can work at your own pace. And the fees are reasonable, because it’s ‘pay-as-you-go’. I can’t think of any downsides to be honest.”

The support structure of Learning through Work has been a real bonus for Anne-Marie:
“When I first started writing assignments it was so different from my normal life, so it was nice to have that extra support from my tutor. It’s worked very well.”

Because Learning through Work involves learners designing their own degree programme, Anne-Marie could match it to her career development needs. Anne-Marie saw the payback from her studies very quickly:
“Learning through Work has benefited my work a lot. It’s made me more understanding than I might have been – getting into the psychology of all of this has completely changed my attitudes to people. The whole point of the exercise was to increase my skills – interpersonal, listening, communication and understanding skills. It’s crystallised a lot of what I do and honed it. I’ve become far more analytical about evaluating what I’m learning and deciding what value it will have to my clients. The degree also helped to give me an unexpected opportunity. When I sold my franchise business I was delighted to be approached by Rosemary Conley and now use my experience, knowledge, training and expertise to help Rosemary’s online slimming club members. This has further enthused me to continue learning and developing my skills.”

Anne-Marie admits that her Learning through Work programme is having a life-changing impact:
“I’ve been quite emboldened and enlivened by the whole thing. It’s given me back my confidence and self-esteem. I hadn’t done any studying since I was 21, when I started this course I was 53. I’ll be 60 soon and

I’ve graduated with a BSc in Nutrition and Weight Management and I plan to start a Masters. I can’t believe it! I like things that make me think and this certainly makes you think. I’d recommend Learning through Work to anyone, at any time of life. To do it in your own time, in your own subject, at your own pace, with fantastic support is really valuable. ”