Shaw Trust Avis 

I have severe mental health issues which mean I have to avoid high-pressure and confrontational environments.
Shaw Trust advisor told me to take an SIA course so i could be a security guard/doorman - an occupation that frequently involves confrontation and stress!
Their mental health support consisted of a telephone call from a counsellor (not a trained psychiatric nurse or psychiatrist) who did not even have any knowledge or experience of dealing with my condition. He offered some blanket advice of the type that I could find online after a 5 second Google search and which demonstrated his complete lack of understanding of and experience in dealing with my mental health condition. I knew more about it than he did and actually had to educate him for 20 minutes on it so he HAD some understanding.

Considering I was told I would be receiving appropriate and tailored support designed for my specific circumstances, it would appear that was a lie to ensure I signed up to their program.

Shaw Trust gets money for getting you in ANY work, so they're only concerned with getting you working in any job. They are not interested in offering individual support, just sending you on inappropriate courses (poetry reading?!?!? Ffs!)

A complete waste of time, unless you want to be a security guard, cleaner or Amazon warehouse worker. Don't believe what they say about supporting people with complex needs - I have complex needs and found half of them ignored or dismissedas unimportant.

For a whole year, I was mandated to attend the RESTART program. During this time I lost valuable time that could have been spent looking for employment that was wasted on travelling to their offices and using their facilities, (Which were not great.) Despite the company being designed to help me find work they were unable to do so with the type of employment I was seeking and so I spent a large portion of my time being directed to customer service roles because they had no connection or support for the industry I wanted to work in. This was done to get me out of their system and give my handler a lovely bonus commission. On one occasion I had given some honest feedback on how I felt I was being supported, and the next time I visited a staff member actively told me to make sure I was giving positive feedback despite him never giving me any support until 9 months into the programme and never knowing my name.

“Appalling charity , programs created to support adults with learning disabilities however poor management, ignorance and lack of knowledge , think twice before you work here “

If you want to be pressed into taking a cleaning job, regardless of your level of fitness, its great!

to say there incompetent would be offensive to incompetent people

They frequently bring you in for face-to-face appointments that primarily involve sitting at a desk and discussing your job search. After this, they spend just a few minutes browsing Indeed and send you links to apply for jobs at home. This process seems unnecessary, as everything could easily be done over the phone, or not at all, since I'm already conducting my own job search.

Additionally, they seem to have limited knowledge about the courses they offer and the companies they work with. For example, I was sent to a course for administrative work without being informed that the company wasn’t hiring for that role. Instead, they were looking for temporary staff to fill positions with other companies, most of which were for cleaning or low-skilled jobs.

As for Shaw Trust's response, it's disheartening to hear that they consider a 40-hour monthly contract a good outcome. i suppose it is a good result if you can live on 200 pounds a month .Overall, my experience has been frustrating and unhelpful.

appauling company!! on their job application forms they ask for instrusive information and data which is in breach of GDPR rules and they ask for national insurance number!! SCAM company!!!

Transformative Coaching Experience – Highly Recommend Saira Kassam!

Working with Saira Kassam has been an incredible experience. From the very first session, she made me feel confident and motivated to take charge of my career. Saira’s approach is personalized and insightful—she took the time to really understand my strengths, values, and long-term goals. Her guidance helped me gain clarity on my next steps and how to approach my professional development.

What sets Saira apart is how much she truly cares about your personal growth. It’s like being guided by a loving mother who wants nothing but the best for you. Her support goes beyond just giving advice—she empowers you to unlock your full potential. I highly recommend Saira to anyone looking for a thoughtful and experienced coach who genuinely invests in your success.

I sincerely appreciate the guidance and support throughout the restart programme from my advisor Saira Kassam. She has greatly helped me improve my confidence, skills where i was lacking. My advisor Saira has been absolutely comforting, understanding, giving me suggestions, supportive, motivated me throughout. Additionally she has helped me with my CV and interviews.
Overall, i would thank her for the great mentorship.

I started the programme in May 2024 and so far I've been receiving so much help and support from my advisor Saira Kassam. She has been absolutely brilliant with all the advice and making my appointments especially with the flexibility due to some circumstances. I had some additional help that she referred me to for my CV. There was a staff member called Julian who helped me with my CV for my dream job. My advisor also made an appointment for me to help with interview skills which was done by Earl who really explained thoroughly how to feel more confident and helped with tips and tricks on your interview

Seemed promising at first, but quickly realised it was just another cobbled together organisation.

They wanted to re-do my CV, a pointless feat but you play along, that was february.. it is now September, and I still haven't had it back.

Told they would pass onto me jobs, courses and the like.. but once they hang up the phone you won't hear from them till the next appointment.

Schedule appointments, then never call you, my last call they rang on my birthday, they let the phone ring once so when as I answered they hung up, they then sent me a threatening email of 'two weeks notice' before removing me from themselves.

Given me a contact number to call which is always engaged, I try and call my advisor directly but seemingly switched his phone off.

Likely been bullied away with no means to contact them before my '2 weeks notice' expires, all part of their plan.

Absolutely useless, I was referred to them after a heart attack made my usual line of work out of the question, I was passed around from “advisor” to “advisor” on a regular basis, 4 in total. I was told they would help me retrain, nothing, finally got myself a job, and the belligerent attitude from the “support manager” was amazing, stroppy and demanding I tell her everything, when they did absolutely sod all to help! Waste of time!

Wouldn’t never recommend this to anyone they have made me feel unsafe they tell me they applied for a job for me to find out they never did and then recommending me to not listen to a health professional it’s a joke

Scam organisation set up by DWP to guide you in the right direction. They do very little to help your situation. They are target driven. If you want advice just go online.

Shaw Trust wants people to think they are able to assist them more than the Jobcentres.
Not the case - Shaw Trust does nothing that the Jobcentre network does not offer to people hunting for a job, but are simply a way for the DWP tp reduce the number of people on its books.
Given a choice, I would urge everyone to avoid this agency,

How on earth the government hasn't got money to pay civil servants, yet it has money to give a bunch of scammers a contract.They make empty promises to help one back into work and never does a thing. Only call and pretend to care about your health,only because one points out how cold and callus they are,to just be throwing someone into a job without even asking if person is well enough to do a job.Asking for help with courses was like pulling teeth.It NEVER HAPPENS. I have a great CV, yet they offer me help to write CV, yet does not know jack about my line of work.Acting like counsellors does not help any situation, especially if you Don't give a rats ass. The government has got lots of money to waste, obviously.
Shaw Trust is like a bunch of con artists. K M D T.

The directors need to be in prison . How is it that out of ten thousand reviews. Only 3 % are not even near ten percent yet the owners put money in the pockets of the ministers who give them nice goverment contracts. They should hang their heads in shame.
I came to the shaw trust as I was refferd there via the job center DEA due to my autsm,
The shaw trust re referred me to “Genious within.”
This org ,was worse than dire. After sending me a txt to “meet him at the library “.
No cell phone no (number withheld.)
I get there and he is too lazy to come to the reception where I’m waiting.
He called me later asking why I never turned up. He wanted to have our first session in a busy public library.
I complained to his bosses and the next thing I heard was “Sorry but we have no office to meet u.
I asked (secretly making a joke.(
Would u agree to meeting me in the local fish and chip shop or the local pub. He said yes,
Well .I went home and found a photo of a tramp sitting on a bench sharing a meal of fish and chips with a man in a suit.
I sent the photo off to the CEO and told her.
Dianne ,
thank u for allowing me to meet my mentor max. He was kind enough to meet me in the chippy and we shared a meal as we sat on the bench and had our session. .
One thing ,just after max finished his meal ,he took out his laptop. A crackhead hit him on the side of the head and stole his laptop.
Hope max is ok because the last time I saw him was when the ambulance came to fetch him,”
Dianne. Next time can I meet max in a pub. At least I’ll have a glass in my hand if someone tries to do it again,
Thank u .
Drunkerd Dan. “

The shaw trust was the worst org i clever had the mus fortune of coming across. They have zero clue on disability and no respect to the client what so ever.
I hope someone from the shaw trust is reading this, I’m busy writing s book that is going to explode the the public will learn that t the org is nothing but a scam to earn money,
Why do u still not offer to meet a client an an office. We are not in 2020 anymore,
Alan m zeligson

As there’s more details and text is limited, i will continue here ,Moreover, as further evidence of the disarray within the organization, I want to highlight the conflicting advice I received from two different support managers. My previous support manager advised me that my chances of finding a job outside of London were better, stating that London requires higher skills and more years of experience. However, when I asked my new support manager oul, he gave the exact opposite advice, insisting that London was the better option for me. This raises a critical question: as an individual without access to detailed data or statistics, I might simply express my opinion based on what I think. But how can this organization, tasked with guiding clients in such crucial matters, provide such contradictory advice? Do they base their guidance on actual data and statistics, or are the support managers merely giving personal opinions as any ordinary person might? This lack of a unified, data-driven approach is concerning and undermines my confidence in the organization’s ability to provide reliable advice.

I was also surprised to find that my new support manager had no knowledge of the practical training I was undergoing, despite the fact that I had already sent all the details to my previous support manager and mentioned that on with him in our previous call . Even after I explained this to him over the phone, he showed no interest in the details. This is particularly troubling because, as someone who is supposed to help me create a plan, he should be fully informed about the steps I have already taken. How can an organization transfer clients to a new support manager without ensuring that all relevant details are communicated? Where is the system, the accuracy, and the attention to detail in this work?

Another issue that highlights the organization’s incompetence is that when I initially started with them and asked whether they had any practical training programs, the support manager said she would look into it—despite this being her job. After a long time passed with no results, I found the training on my own through extensive research. If they are supposed to be advising me on how to search for a job, how can I trust their guidance when they were unable to find something as essential as this training, which is funded by the government? If they were truly competent, they would have been able to find this information easily. The fact that I had to do this on my own despite their supposed expertise is alarming.

Another confusing issue is that my previous support manager told me that it was essential to get my university degree accredited to improve my job search prospects. However, my new support manager dismissed this as unimportant and said it wouldn’t help me at all, despite the fact that the previous support manager spent time and effort on the accreditation process. This inconsistency begs the question: How does this organization operate? Does every support manager just express their own personal opinions without any data or statistical backing, like any ordinary person? How can I trust this organization when it seems to be run in such a chaotic manner?

I also find it deeply concerning that if Shaw Trust is using funds—whether from government contracts, grants, or charitable donations—to pay the salaries of support managers like Olu, who engage in such unprofessional conduct, then this is not only a failure in delivering their social responsibility but also a betrayal of the trust placed in them by donors and the public. This situation raises serious questions about the effectiveness and integrity of Shaw Trust as an organization, and whether it is fulfilling its duty as a charitable entity committed to genuinely helping those in need.

Sadly I had blood clot on my brain after bad reaction to covid vaccine. I asked job center for help to get back in to work sadly they said I should go to show trust as they help elope with disabilities to get back in to work
First all appointments where by phone call and made on universal credit journal but I do loads better face to face I struggle online after brain injury from the blood clot.
After weeks they said I could have face to face appointment but that’s when madness started they would email appointments or call and make over the phone or text message me often I would get text 18;30 in evening that I had sone appointment the next day often when was phone meeting no one would call and they would falsely claim I did not pick up call I sent screen shots of my mobile to show I had no missed calls at all from them
But miss three appointments as punishment they switch to call appointments only only when your being good can you go back to face face appointments I kept telling them please I have brain injury it’s very hard for me to communicate on phone it’s much more easy in person for me but no punishment is only after few weeks of call appointments can you go back to face to face appointments 🤬
They never heard of the equalities act business should adjust to help people with dissabilaties amps for dissabled hearing loops for death and face to face meetings for people with brain injueries and struggle with online or phone meetings but no they live be there own rules anyone had sane problem get in touch so we can take them with class law suit

Just putting some of my experience at the Grantham branch was referred to the place by the job centre I was told they would be understanding and compassionate and understanding for the older employees looking for work. it started of ok I explained my injury's obtained in work that I did at a pharmaceutical company in Old Dalby and explained about arthritis in my hand , I never exaggerated and told the truth. Having a old car updated my repairs and problems but with time it got stressful with the adviser. I got in debt with credit cards trying to please the adviser and had to scrap my car. Pressure increased on to me and a job interview was set up in Boston over 30 miles a way got no help with fuel and got told I would be under no obligation taking the job, anyway I went for the job openly talked to the bloke and explained there was a nearer job I was planning to go to, when I went to the adviser I got told off and it was unpleasant saying I sabotaged the interview that was a Lie and I got reported to the job centre. Eventually it got to stressful for me and I signed off the unemployment with no funds to live on for 2 months until I took early retirement. Basically these companies and advisers show be working to help the older generation rather than using bullying methods and stressing people out. I was looking for lighter work due to health conditions may be I should have gone to the doctor. This is a truthful statement and hopefully methods can be changed to help out other people.

My Employment Advisor
William Innes - -
Scot has been so very much supportive and understanding to the unemployed situation I have found myself in.
I have appreciated our meetings and telephone calls that have helped to make me feel posotive and worthwhile.
If you get the opportunity to have careers advise with Scot - Take It

I have understood and taken his advise
Teresa Bain