Why Fledgling Work Exists Too many young people leave education without real work experience. Too many small businesses need help but can’t justify hiring. Fledgling Work exists to bridge that gap – with paid, flexible, skill-led work that benefits both sides.
What We Believe Early-career work should be paid
Skills matter more than credentials
Flexibility helps everyone
Simpler systems work better
We’re building Fledgling Work deliberately and ethically, starting small and focusing on real outcomes while keeping the experience human.
Our Swans Experienced marketing and digital professionals who've stepped back from full-time work, all genuinely invested in the next generation of talent and very much still in the game.
During her career as a marketer, our founder Suze led several product launches at Microsoft, 118 118 and UKTV, and is now a Swan for our marketing projects.
Meet Suze Frequently Asked Questions For Businesses
For Early-Career Talent
Fledgling Work is a paid early-career platform that connects businesses with capable people aged 18+. We work across project-based work, internships and longer development placements, covering marketing, creative, research and operations. All matches are personally curated, not algorithm-led.
Book a call to tell us what you need. We'll help shape the brief and suggest the right project structure.
We personally match you with a shortlist of suitable students or graduates who've completed our consultancy training.
Meet your shortlist and set the one you like a short task related to your project, so you know exactly how they'd approach the work before you commit.
Choose your Fledgling and get started. We handle matching and payments so you can focus on the work.
Want extra peace of mind? Add Swan oversight, an experienced marketing professional who stays closely involved in the early stages of your project. Highly recommended for month one. Find out more.
Once we've had a chat and you're happy to go ahead, we ask for the first month's £30 platform fee upfront. It's a small commitment, but it means we can get properly started on your brief and you know you've got a real place in the process rather than just an expression of interest.Not sure yet? Take a look at our business stories and case studies to see how other founders have found it. Read their stories .
What do I receive with each match? For each fledgling we introduce, you’ll receive:
How many people will I be matched with? You’ll be introduced to a minimum of three fledglings per brief.
How should I structure the work? We always recommend starting with a defined project rather than ongoing work. It gives both sides a clear goal and a natural point to review before committing to more.
What if we want to keep working together after the project? If things go well and you want to take your Fledgling on in a regular hourly or salaried role, that arrangement is agreed directly between you, no fee from us, ever.
What level of support will a Fledgling need? Fledglings are early-career, so structure matters.
All project payments go through Fledgling Work.
What kinds of projects can businesses post on Fledgling Work? Fledgling Work projects are clearly scoped pieces of work with defined outcomes. Most businesses begin with a small starter project and expand the work if the collaboration goes well. This allows both sides to work together and see how things go before committing to larger pieces of work.Starter Projects
Marketing Creative Business and Research
Setting up 1 to 3 social media channels and creating a 3 to 4 week content plan
Designing 6 to 8 Canva templates for social media
Researching a target market and analysing 5 to 8 competitors
Researching 5 to 8 competitors and summarising their marketing approach
Creating 10 to 12 social media graphics
Identifying 50 to 100 potential sales prospects
Creating a newsletter template and preparing the first two editions
Designing a 10 to 15 slide presentation or pitch deck
Organising and structuring CRM contacts
Researching 10 to 15 content topics and developing a content calendar
Extended Projects
Phase
Description
Phase 1
Research or setup work such as competitor research or social media setup
Phase 2
Implementation such as creating and publishing content
Phase 3
Ongoing work such as continuing content production or marketing support
Feedback
Why do starter projects start from £100? Most projects range from £200 to £1,000 to ensure the work is meaningful, fairly compensated and worth both sides' time. Extrememly light intensity projects can start from £100, but this is in line with the scope of work required.
What happens after the first project? That’s entirely up to you.
Is Fledgling Work a recruitment agency? No.
Is this suitable for large or complex projects? Generally, no. Fledgling Work is best suited to clearly scoped projects with defined outcomes, early-career support, and marketing, creative or operational work.Find out more .
What if I’m not sure what I need yet? That’s very common.
Project Match: £30 per month
How do I know if a match will be good? Fledgling Work was founded by Suze Cook, former Head of Marketing and founder of Ruby Magpie, with over 20 years' experience in marketing, digital, communications and sales.Swans are there to make sure everything is heading in the right direction before you even need to ask.
How do you ensure the quality of the people you introduce? All matches are personally reviewed and curated by Suze and her small team.
What if a match doesn’t work out? If things genuinely aren’t working, we’ll do our best to find an alternative match at no extra cost.
Are you a social enterprise? Yes. Fledgling Work is built on a clear social mission to level the playing field for early-career talent and the businesses that want to support them. We're committed to giving young people access to meaningful paid work based on ability, not connections, and to giving back a percentage of our profits to support that mission.
What is a Swan and do I need one? A Swan is an experienced marketing professional who has stepped back from full-time work and still has a wealth of knowledge to share. They will be experts in the marketing channels that you need support in. Think senior talent that's out of the rat race but very much still in the game.Find out more.
Interested in becoming a Swan? If you're a marketing, digital or creative expert with time on your hands and a genuine passion for supporting early-career talent, we'd love to hear from you. Get in touch at hello@fledgling.work
Fledgling Work helps you access paid, real-world work with small businesses who need practical support.
You can join if you are:
Do I have to pay to join? No.
Yes, always.
What kind of work is available? Typical work includes:
How do projects usually work? Most projects:
Once you’re accepted onto the platform:
How do projects work for candidates? When a business is matched to your skills and availability, we’ll contact you with the full project details, including the scope of work, expected timeframe and total project fee.
Am I employed by Fledgling Work? No. For project work, you operate as a self-employed individual or sole trader and are responsible for your own tax. For internships and placements, the employment arrangement is agreed directly between you and the business. If you are unsure how to set yourself up as self-employed, we can point you in the right direction.
How much do projects pay? Each project has a total fee, agreed upfront. Fees vary depending on the scope, length and type of work involved.
Do I have to accept projects I'm matched to? No. Being matched simply means we think a project could be a good fit. It’s entirely your choice whether to go ahead.
• The employer pays the project fee to Fledgling Work
Do you take a fee from my pay? We take a 5% fee from your project payment, which goes back into running and growing the platform. In return, you get matched opportunities, support throughout your project, and a real work example to add to your portfolio.
What if something goes wrong? If there’s an issue with scope, communication or payment, you can contact us and we’ll help resolve it.
Can this lead to more work? Often, yes.
What happens if an employer wants to keep working with me after a project? Projects introduced through Fledgling Work are agreed, scoped and paid for through the platform. This means your payment is agreed upfront and held securely until the agreed work is delivered.
Do you offer any training? Our training programme is coming soon. In the meantime, we offer one-to-one training for all our Fledglings when they take on a project.
What information will I need to provide? You’ll be asked about your skills, interests, availability and any relevant experience or examples of work.
How does payment and tax work? When you’re paid for project work through Fledgling Work, you’re paid as an independent individual, not as an employee.
Do I need to be a limited company? No. Most people start as a sole trader, which is the simplest option.
Do I need to register with HMRC straight away? Not necessarily.here .this page explains the process clearly.
I have never invoiced a company before, how do I do it? You can use our template here .
We're building something different. Fledgling Work connects early-career talent with growing businesses. We exist because access to early-career opportunity is still shaped by who you know and whether you can afford to work for free.
We're building something different. Fledgling Work connects early-career talent with growing businesses. We exist because access to early-career opportunity is still shaped by who you know and whether you can afford to work for free. We're changing that - through paid work, skills-based assessment, and by actively sourcing talent from backgrounds that traditional hiring overlooks.
© 2026 Fledgling Work
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