To have thought the jobcentre was meant to help you find a job?

[Houseonahill]

Just had an appointment with my work coach as after a few really hard years and only working part-time since having DD I wanted some advice on my options.

I am currently unqualified (the last exams i did were GCSEs) but would like to go and train to be a counsellor I asked how training would work with UC and if I was allowed to do a full time course (I'm a single mum and can't get child care evenings and weekends so working while doing it would be hard). The answer was she didn't know.

I asked if they could help me find a college/uni or if there is any they recommend or just any advice on it really as I'm new to the area. She gave me a leaflet for a company that will help you write a CV?!

I asked if my current zero hour contract at the pub would result in me being sanctioned as when I went back to work after maternity I went back full time but wasn't coping with being a single mum to a 6 month old and working full time so dropped my hours to 20 a week and they tried to sanction me and it took months of arguing and letters from my GP and MP for them to agree not to sanction me so I was worried if I had lots of hours one month and not many the next that would count as voluntarily dropping hours and I would be sanctioned........She didn't know.

She then went on to suggest I apply for a job in asda or as a home carer for elderly or disabled people???? Where did that even come from? I have a job and a plan for my future?

So basically, they know nothing about UC and how it works and can't or won't help me get back into training so I can eventually earn enough money to not rely on benefits to top up my wages. What exactly is they are meant to be doing if it's none of the above?

Grrr sorry for the rant.

"(around the ‘New Deal’ time if anyone remembers that) and was told I’d have to be OOW for 6 months before any training would be considered and even then, I couldn’t just decide I wanted to be a plumber or whatever, it would be a course they decided with their ‘approved provider’"

oh yes i was on ND. A bout of workfare then they were about to send me on a second bout of workfare when i found a night job in a sex chatline office. When i went to sign off the cheeky fuckers at Reed had the nerve to tell me they could find me better when the previous time they were going to send me to a soup factory for three months to work for my JSA. Took them THREE HOURS to get the paperwork together so i could sign off. (they clearly hadnt been too careful with it as they obviously assumed i was unemployable. THEN after i started at the office (working nights) apparently someone from Reed rocked up at the office during the day to ask questions. My then boss sent them away with a flea in their ear. i was fuming They could have lost me the job Which was probably their modus operandi because back then they got paid when ppl were on their books.

I didnt put on the signing off form what the job was.

But i fucking well would do now if i was ever in that situation again.

How nasty some people are being about job centre staff.

When I was signing on I found them very friendly. Perhaps because I was polite. No, they weren't able to offer specific help in my case but they seemed willing.

I was to see vans drawing up outside and blokes stripping off their overalls before walking in to sign on. Did they not have CCTV?! And I remember one girl talking on her phone at same time as her interview and saying, "Nah, I can't get anywhere by 9." As a job centre worker you must be worn down by this day in day out.

My one and only time dealing with a job centre was a bit scary. Genuinely wanted to find work, went to the building and was met with a bloody great security guard. He glared at me and I asked "Where do I go to look at job adverts?" He glared at me and just listed which desks did which benefits. I didn't want benefits. Never again.

God I had to do a week long course and it was the biggest waste of time ever.

They looked at our CVs. Mine was deemed good. I sat doing nothing whilst they helped other people with their CVs.

The leader suggested I work as a carer for people with autism, my only qualification being having a son with autism. I pointed out that I had quite enough dealing with my child's autism and I saw getting a job as being a break from autism.

Then we did tests to see if we needed to do a functional maths or english qualification. Except I sat and did nothing whilst everyone else did the test as the leader recognised there was no point my doing it as I am educated to degree level.

The thing is the course itself was not s bad course and some people found it useful, especially those who were referred for adult learning courses. One lady had severe dyslexia and had really struggled with school and they thought they could help her gain a qualification.

But it would have been better to screen for suitability in advance. Not least because it was really embarrassing having to sit and do nothing, whilst being looked at like you were the class geek.

Next stop citizens advice...

OP if you haven’t studied for a long time, can I suggest you apply to your local colllege to do an Access course? It’s usually a 3 day/16 hour per week level 3 (so A level equivalent) course for a year and is usually funded. They will also help you with ACAS application and transition to university. Unless it’s changed within the past 5 years You will still be able to claim your benefits whilst doing the course as it’s part time so you wouldn’t be entitled to student finance.

Oops, Imperfectsusan post wasn’t there when I started typing

I have always found them useless too, last time I went to see them was when I split with my husband, I was carer for my 2 disabled children and claiming carers allowance so technically didn’t have to work, they called me in for a talk and tried to get me to apply for a job at M&S, I told them that would be great if they can arrange child care for my disabled kids I would happily apply .

I ended up finding part time work, like you I wanted to be a similar career but could not afford to go on a full time course or find the hours to go, I’m working as a mental health support worker which is in a similar job to what I wanted but obviously not so high up.

Job centres are a waste of time, they don’t have a clue and are not helpful at all.

They actually made me sit the test, Susan. Then they tried to get me to do the qualification because I’d done really well. I am only assume that came from some sort of target ND had for getting people through functional skills courses.

Jobcentres when you could walk in & look at jobs on the boards were great, now they are more like entering a prison. Security guards questioning you about why you are there & managers doing their best to get rid of you before you get to see the staff who administer benefits. I had to go to a job centre to get an emergency rent payment when I was moving house. All customers waiting for emergency payments were put in a room with a locked door & a security guard manning the door, the room had no windows, just rows of seats & doors down one side to the cubicles where you would be given your payment. You either turned up at 9.30 or 1.30pm according to your appointment & sat there until your name was called, you went in a cubicle, saw a member of staff who interrogated you why you needed the payment & made the decision whether or not you got your payment. Afterwards you had to ask the security guard to release you from the room, you were then passed to another security guard who escorted you out the building. Eating & drinking weren't allowed in the building, there were no toilets or lifts, how anyone in a wheelchair managed I will never know.

i wonder how the security guards are going to handle the irate pensioners after 15th May

RafaIsTheKingOfClay

Poor you. I was mortified by the whole thing, but at the same time cross as I had done a lot to help myself get a job by that point, including paying to do an ECDL course and doing three weeks full time unpaid work in an office, organised by the job centre. So it wasn't as if I wasn't trying.

It was just that as a single parent, with no relatives to help with childcare, I was really restricted as to what hours I could do. And I live in a deprived area so a lot of jobs are zero hours, must be flexible types.

I did get a job in the end, but I had to give it up after a year as DS was getting worse and I was suicidal trying to cope with everything.

To be fair my coach was really nice and tried to help me get DLA for my son. She saw him have a meltdown in the job centre. But her hands were tied by the system. This was pre UC. So I dread to think what it's like now.

No, they don't help you find a job. What they do is police whether you're job searching 'correctly' (ie, to their satisfaction).
l've found that the knowledge of jobcentre staff varies massively. What they tell you seems extremely random, depending on who you actually speak to.

l was on ESA before and after major surgery. When l was assessed and passed 'fit for work' l was told l'd have to apply for Universal Credit. Which l did. A few days later l got a phone call from the Jobcentre manager to tell me that due to my physical limitation, UC wasn't "appropriate for me" as l was only going to be able to work part time, and therefore would have to apply for JSA instead. My job coach didn't tell me that.

My friend was on ESA, and had an assessment which passed her as fit for work (her GP disagreed). Her job coach told her to apply for JSA but didn't tell her that as she was living with her (employed) partner, that she'd only receive payments for 6 months. Which wasn't a problem, her partner was fine with that, but we actually had to go to the jobcentre and ask why her money had been stopped before we found that out.

l received my workplace pension in October. l told the DWP about my change in circumstances, but was told that until they reached a decision about whether l was still entitled to claim JSA, l'd have to keep signing on fortnightly. Which l have been. l found out a month ago that l'm not entitled to JSA (which is fair enough) but l was told that l still have to sign on every two weeks "for National lnsurance." Which involves a car journey and paying for parking.

When l went to sign on last week, my usual job coach was on holiday, so l saw a lady l've seen before. She's a bit older than me and we've chatted a few times, she's very nice and helpful. We were discussing pensions, etc as she's got hers and is only working part time now . Talking about looking for work, l said "l'm not even looking just now, l'm managing." She looked at me and said quietly "l wouldn't say that to anyone else, even if you're only signing on for NI, you're still meant to be looking for work."
My job coach has never told me that. Nor has she asked to see my job searches since l got my pension.
Also, neither she, nor anyone else at the jobcentre, (until this lady last week) told me to use the Government Gateway to see if l've paid sufficient NI over the years (l've always worked since l was 18, never had any employment gaps) because if l have, l won't need to go and sign on every two weeks. Or that l may be eligible for State Pension when l reach the qualifying age.
lt seems to be very hit and miss about what they actually know or tell you. l don't know if it's lack of training, ignorance, or deliberate. l've been very lucky but l find the lack of information from staff very worrying.

Oh, and when l went to a Job Fair after my major surgery, a member of Jobcentre staff (who l'd never seen before or since!) suggested that l could go and do 'work experience' at a Jobcentre. For a month. Unpaid.

l worked in admin for 28 years. l was an office manager for 16 of those years. Needless to say l didn't take him up on his 'offer'. lt might have been useful for someone starting out or wanting a career change, but not for me. l found it patronising and insulting.

You need to show some initiative here and start looking into the nuts and bolts of training yourself and how to obtain it.

This is what I was doing, JC was my first port of call for trying to find out if I can get financial help and how any studying/student grants would effect my benefits. I just thought they would be more helpful than they were.

As for getting a loan, how can i get a loan when my outgoings and incomings match up nearly exactly every month? I wouldn't make even the first repayment. (That's not snooty that's a genuine question)

I just want to make a better life for me and DD not be reliant on benefits for ever.

Thank you to everyone by the way and sorry some of you have suffered too

As for getting a loan, how can i get a loan when my outgoings and incomings match up nearly exactly every month? I wouldn't make even the first repayment. (That's not snooty that's a genuine question)

You get student loans and you don't have to pay them back until you're finished the course and working. But the days of grants are long gone and you need to research courses yourself and then ask about loans.

If you want a better life you have to go out there and start getting it yourself, the job centre isn't careers advice.

Have a look online at courses in your area, a quick Google and the gov.co.uk page for how loan amounts will affect your UC.

Katseyes7 - look on www.gov.uk website to see how many years NI you have paid. I think you need 35 years to qualify for full state pension. You can check the date when you will receive your state pension and how much it will be too

Adult learning loans aren't the same as the loans you're thinking of. The repayment system is completely different.

If you do complete the training what are your plans then?

My plans then are to be a counsellor and provide CBT, preferably for the NHS and preferably for CAMHS, the service is in dire straights but I understand funding is a big issue there so would do private if I couldn't get a job with the NHS.

They are not interested in finding people a career just a job, any job. Tick box target mentality.

OrangeB0ttle Thank you! l will. Fingers crossed!

It's fine to do a college or university course whilst you are on UC the problem is that any money you get from college or uni to help pay/fund your course is classed as an income, which means they will look at it as earnings against your benefit.

So you could end up with a fair bit in burseries and grants but then have no benefit coming in. It's so wrong how they do it.

I don't think UC is designed to get people off benefits, it causes debt to go on it and causes alot of people to live off of Foodbanks and be homeless.

I think it's designed to keep us poor people as poor people with no real prospects of ever bettering ourselves.

the job centre isn't careers advice

But it absolutely should be. It is in everyone's best interests if those who rely on benefits were able to access decent advice on how to improve their long term prospects rather than just "shove everyone off benefits in to unsuitable and unreliable work and then wipe your hands of them".

prancingP it certainly feels that way at times