Can I just say this is supposed to be a topic about Ingeus which has gone waaay off track. Can we get back to discussing their incompetence please.

No! The job is most definately not with these clowns. I only applied for the advisor position just to see what their parameters for employees was. The actual job I have got is with a very busy and expanding supply chain company with lots of scope for advancement. And one of the few companies around that is not worried about employing a 57yo

Well, after 10 months with these buffoons I can finally say goodbye to their pointless appointments and inane courses as I have finally secured employment. Truly pee'd off my advisor as the position I am starting is quite a fair bit more lucrative than her salary (I know this as was actually interviewed for an advisor position earlier this year). She asked me if i'd like to ring the bell to tell everyone i'd got a job but told her that as i'd got this one all on my own felt no need to boost their egos thinking they had a part of it.

Rest assured, come the glorious day I eventually get a job they will only be able to contact me by mail (which will go straight in the bin) or by knocking on the door (which my 92yo Father-in-law will politely tell them to p*** off!) Will just sign off at Jobcentre with no further details given.

Amazingly I seem to have the only decent Ingeus advisor in the world. She has acknowledged that due to my age (57) it may be a little difficult to find work even with all my previous experience. She knows I am doing the job searches and there are no more courses she can send me on which will benefit. So we've come to an arrangement. We do phone appointments every 6 weeks but I email her inbetween and she'll also let me know if anything comes up jobwise. Sorted!

Had a very professional email from my advisor when I enquired what time my next appointment was. 'Hi Hun, tomorrow at 10:30' Very businesslike.

If you have proof from the company that you have an interview then there's bugger all Ingeus can do about it.

Well I think they have now realised that other than actually getting me in front of an interviewer there is little else they have to offer me. Have now been told just to carry on what i'm already doing and my next appointment is in 6 weeks!! I just have to drop her an email every week to remind her I still exist!

Well with you on that one essexmat. I have over 38 years work experience yet the clowns at Ingeus sent me on one of their 4 week 'skills for employment' courses??? That's 4 weeks of my life i'll never get back. So i'll see my advisor tomorrow and see what bull**** they feed me then.

They could find out if they wanted to check. And if it was still within the 90 mins travelling time they could sanction if he turned the job down because of the distance.

Group interviews are just a way they can see a load of people at once. They will then pick from that who they want so you still may not be offered a job.

Iif you're already on the Work Programme the 'Help to Work' scheme only kicks in at the end of your 2 years

The jobsearch proof is an absolute joke, last time I was given a target of 50 jobs over a month so just to test made up the whole lot but printed them nicely on a pretty excel spreadsheet. She was amazed and said to her colleague on the next desk 'This is how everyone should do it'. Was inwardly ****ing myself.

Absolutely hate the feckers. Total waste of time. The only people they're interested in are themselves. All they're bothered about is meeting their targets.

Been on a couple of these and not had a problem turning them down

Have now been registered with Ingeus since Nov. Have been through 4 different advisors, attended 2 of their 'marvellous' one day courses and now have been put on one of their 4 week ' Skills for employment' courses. The tutor asked me on the second day 'Why are you on this course? you seem to have no problems with confidence' So I thought 'you asked for it' and told him that I was not given the option of not attending as my advisor just said 'oh this will be good for you'. To give you a little background. I have around 40 years of business experience within the Retail Sector and also admin/IT. And although Ingeus keep telling me age is not an issue these days I have had interviews where this definately HAS been the issue. I send out spec letters as a matter of course, but also to keep my numbers up (purely to keep these clowns happy) apply for all the fake jobs advertised on the agency sites. Can't afford to tell them to stuff it so just have to play along. My only way to get through this totally useless to me course is purely to try and help some of the other people on the course with less experience. SOMEONE GIVE ME A JOB PLEASE!!!!!!