Alex Batty, who disappeared for six years after being abducted by his mother, has expressed a renewed "sense of purpose" since starting a job at a waste management company. Mr Batty, now 20, stated that the employment has given his young family financial security.
Mr Batty, from Oldham, was declared missing in 2017 at the age of 11. He spent his teenage years living off-grid in France after his mother and grandfather failed to return him from a holiday in Spain.
After returning to live with his grandmother in Oldham, Mr Batty found himself out of work for a long time. He had previously told the BBC that he was one of 981,000 people aged 16 to 24 not in education, employment, or training.
Daniel Carolan, a manager at SUEZ UK, heard Mr Batty discuss his situation on BBC Breakfast and subsequently offered him an opportunity. Three months on, Mr Batty described it as "a great feeling" to be employed, highlighting the pressure he felt to support his family financially without a job.