Civil servant applying to other cs depts - SC and reference worries

[cld1983]

Hi all

I am a current civil servant and have had a lot of mental health issues the past few years resulting in long periods of absences.

I am now on medication after a long and tough journey to find the right treatment for my depression and anxiety and i feel positive to move forward with my future.

The reason my mental health took a dip was because i was in an abusive relationship with someone who drank, that relationship broke down, their mother passed away (mum was quite young). A family member of mine passed away 2 weeks before. I then lost my home as my landlord sold the property. This all happened in such a small space of time. Ive had counselling and cbt sessions and now on meds which have made me feel like me again.

And...i have two interviews with other civil service depts. What i am worried about is my absence in my current employment. Ive had a stint in hospital as well with an absess which resulted in an op. Not much luck at all til now.
Will my prospective new employer dismiss my application even though i am passed this bad patch in my life?
Also regarding the SC, i have about 7k debt and am in the process of setting up a dmp. Will this affect me getting my clearance if i am successful at my interviews?
Any help would be greatfully received.

At some stage, they will obviously need to consider your health record as part of their recruitment process but my experience of CS is that they try to comply with Equality principles by considering your skills and experience and suitability for the role first, before they look at attendance.

Re your finance DMP, they will probably see this positively that you're taking action, depending on whether they know about it as it sounds like you haven't set it up yet. They do take credit rating and financial stability in their decision making process, as they view decisions like taking out loans and taking on debt as indicative of the person's character. May seem unfair, but that's life I'm afraid.