Impact Newsletter - December 2022

Career switching veteran transfers skills

What’s inside...

Moving from the army to Ingeus may not sound like the most natural career step, but for Glenn Pratt, the change made perfect sense.

When a health scare brought his army life to an abrupt end, he decided he wanted to follow a path of helping others, drawing on skills gained in the forces. Shortly into his role as a Dependency and Recovery Guide with Ingeus’s Commissioned Rehabilitative Services (CRS), and the former military training instructor is positive he’s made the right decision.

Glenn, who served in Iraq and Afghanistan, explains, “I had an operation in 2018 to remove a tumour from my spinal cord and, after a series of radiotherapy, I was medically discharged from the army last year. Leaving forced me to reassess what I was going to do.”

Initially starting a job as a transport planner for another company, when his partner went back to work after her maternity leave, they were able to afford for him to do something he enjoyed more – something where he felt he could make a difference.

Commissioned by the Ministry of Justice, Ingeus’s CRS delivers the Dependency and Recovery services in North and West Yorkshire, Northumbria, Cleveland and Durham. In his role as a guide, Glenn will be working with former male offenders currently on probation. He’ll be supporting a range of men aged 18+ to turn their lives around following dependency on drugs and alcohol.

“The army had a shouting culture when I first joined aged 17,” says Glenn, now 34, and from Middlesbrough. “But latterly it became much more focussed on coaching and mentoring. When I was an instructor, I was helping to build people’s confidence – I’m good at it and I’ll be transferring my skills to this role.

“I want to be able to help push people to use mental resilience to get through

Page 2 Promoting positivity over the Christmas period

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tough situations and to challenge their lives. I’ll even be helping them with things like trips to the supermarket –everyday tasks that other people don’t think twice about doing.”

Ingeus is a signatory on the Armed Forces Covenant, supporting veterans into work.

Glenn is only too aware of the challenges people can face in turning their lives around. He has come across fellow veterans who haven’t found the transition to life outside of the forces easy. He’s grateful to Ingeus for the opportunities it offers to those leaving the military.

He says “I’ve met a few veterans here already, and they’re very positive about their jobs. When you’ve been moving around so much, it’s good to have the stability that Ingeus offers.

“Ingeus has been outstanding for me so far. The team has been so welcoming and helpful, it’s already given me that sense of belonging that I had in the army.”

Spreading joy with the Children’s Christmas Toy Appeal

NCS

Changemakers promote positivity for the Christmas period

International Day of People with Disabilities

Our NCS (National Citizen Service)

Changemakers at Boston Endeavour Academy have been hard at work raising awareness around mental health and support for their fellow students. They designed t-shirts with positive messages and ways to stay happy and healthy that were hung on a noticeboard for all to see. The display also included infographics on local mental health charities the students had researched.

And that’s not all! The teens have also been raising money through a sponsored walk in their pyjamas and collaborated with Boston charity, Local Hope, who provided 30 bags of grocery essentials and Christmas treats.

Our Changemakers added to these bags with the money they raised and donated to sheltered housing in Boston before Christmas.

In December we joined the celebrations for the International Day of People with Disabilities.

Since 1992, the United Nations has marked the International Day of People with Disabilities every year on 3rd December to spread the word on disability issues and mobilise support for the dignity, rights, and wellbeing of persons with disabilities.

The estimated one billion people living with disabilities worldwide face many barriers to inclusion, and as a result they do not enjoy access to society on equal basis with others in areas such as transportation, employment and education, as well as social and political participation. This international event aims to promote empowerment and help create real opportunities for people with disabilities.

We ran a series of sessions for people to find out more about key topics including:

• Mental Health – Supporting others at work and home, featuring Harry Key, Head of Global Specialist Services at CiC. In this session, Harry looked at what we can do and what tools we can use to support our colleagues, teams, family

and friends with an increasing number of us needing support with our mental wellbeing and resilience.

• Neurodiversity in the workplace, with Professor Amanda Kirby, Chair of ADHD foundation and Neurodiversity campaigner, who helped increase our awareness and understanding of how people experience and interact with the world in many ways, and how this can influence how we learn and communicate at work.

• Arthritis Awareness with Maureen McAllister, Workplace Health Development Manager at Versus Arthritis. Maureen explained how to recognise and prevent the onset of arthritis.

• Back & Neck Care in the Workplace with Richard Patricio, CEO at Workhappy. He provided tips, tricks and hints on how to keep comfortable and safe when working at your desk, as back pain is now the world’s leading cause of human disability.

350 colleagues joined the sessions with some fantastic feedback for our speakers.

Government officials drop into Ingeus’ Restart Scheme in London

Ingeus’ Restart Scheme centre in Lambeth was recently visited by senior government officials from the Department for Work and Pensions to see first-hand the employability support provided in the area.

They met with local residents to discuss their experience of the programme in a friendly ‘sip and search’ job search group.

The guests also toured the centre, heard from London Learning Consortium providers about sectorbased work academies, British Transport Police about vacancies, and observed CV and interview skills workshops.

Emma Warren, Ingeus Regional Director said: “The Restart Scheme was designed to give personalised support to anyone in the local area trying to move toward a working

life. Some became unexpectedly unemployed due to the pandemic, others face health, skills, or social barriers – breaking down these obstacles is an important part of our work. Our teams and partners have the specialist knowledge to do that and I am proud to have been able to give our commissioners a taste some of our training workshops and skills opportunities, and introduce them to our partners, local employers and wonderful participants.”

All aboard the Debt Free Advice bus

Fundraising by flaunting our

festive Christmas jumpers

Our Restart Scheme team in Hammersmith welcomed the Debt Free Advice bus to the centre recently to offer their incredible services to everyone that needs it during these difficult times.

We would like to say a big thank you to the whole team, including Hammersmith & Fulham Council and the Mayor’s office, who Ingeus have been working with over the last 12 months to provide these vital services, offering support and guidance to thousands of people in need of debt advice. You can find out more about their services here: www. debtfreeadvice.com

UK’s Christmas Jumper Day on 8th December, raising awareness of

healthy and

world

We came together in our centres across England and had great fun flaunting our most fabulous Christmas jumpers and hats! If you can’t wear an over-the-top jumper covered in glitter, lit up with fairy lights, playing jingle bells at Christmas time, when can you wear one?

We raised £120 and as the government will match that, we have a total of £240.

We were proud to support Save the Children

the amazing work they do to keep children safe,

learning, and deliver their belief in a

where every child has a chance of the future they deserve.

most

Spreading Christmas joy with the Children’s Toy Appeal

Our Restart scheme team in Bury came together to play the part of Santa Claus and donated an amazing 354 toys to the Salvation Army Homeless Children Christmas Toy appeal.

The Salvation Army are running the toy appeal to spread the joy of Christmas to families whose children would otherwise not receive a gift, with numbers expected to be higher than ever this year due to the cost-of-living crisis.

Sarah Jones, Territorial Envoy from the Salvation Army, shared “This will make such a difference to the children of the area!”

Social adventimpactcalendar

Throughout

With so many amazing stories of collaboration and achievement across the business, it was difficult to choose just 24 of this year’s highlights for the company advent calendar.

This year we’ve focussed on stories enabling better lives for our customers – stories made possible by our staff and our partners’ commitment to helping our customers progress and thrive. Whether that’s working directly with our customers, or enabling programmes and service excellence from our central services – this is why we do what we do!

Check out our 24 days of social impact on our website.

December, we published an Advent Calendar of content on our website and our social media platforms.

New clothing business is the perfect fit for Lydia

Lydia Griffiths had long dreamed of running her own business – but wasn’t sure where to start. After joining the JETS employability programme in the Northwest, 22-year-old Lydia from Morecambe is now turning that dream into a reality. This is despite going through a tumultuous time in which she was threatened with eviction from her home.

Ingeus delivers Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) on behalf of the Department for Work and Pensions to help unemployed people find employed or self-employed work.

Lydia had previously been a cleaner in a hospice and enjoyed being in a care environment. She then signed up to a nursing course but realised it wasn’t for her. She decided she could stay true to her caring ethos by launching a business that would help good causes.

A.R.K. Clothing (which stands for Acts of Random Kindness) would sell ecofriendly clothes online, with a proportion of the profits going to charity.

Lydia’s work coach at Morecambe Jobcentre Plus encouraged her to sign up to JETS for advice, and she was put in touch with Ingeus employment coach Ben Johnson-Lewis, who supported her with convenient remote appointments. Unfortunately, Lydia then faced the threat of eviction from her home, which affected her mental wellbeing:

“When I was referred to JETS I was feeling pretty great, I was on top of things and really excited but then the housing problems began to develop,” says Lydia. “It became stressful not knowing where I was going next. Ben was a very big help and was always checking how I was personally. He gave me a lot of moral and emotional support.”

Lydia was directed to Shelter for help with her housing problems. Thankfully, the threat of eviction is no longer imminent.

Ben gave Lydia checklists of tasks to complete, such as sorting out her tax paperwork, setting up a website, and securing a wholesaler. Lydia booked on to social media seminars to learn about the different platforms. She was also referred to John Kilcoyne at supply chain partner Kilcoyne Associates for advice on self-employment finances and accounting.

To help get A.R.K. Clothing off the ground, Ben sourced £500 to purchase the initial stock from the wholesaler.

“Ben told me to make a list of what I wanted from the wholesaler and then cleared it with JETS to get the initial stock,” says Lydia. “He was rooting for me like a sales rep, telling everyone how amazing I am!” Once she had the stock, Lydia set up a photoshoot, using friends to model the assorted beanie hats, hoodies, and joggers.

With her home life now a lot more stable, Lydia is working hard to build up the business. “It’s really fun!” she says. “I didn’t realise how fun business is and I am enjoying all the different elements of it.” She adds: “I definitely recommend JETS, they are just so helpful. It’s having that moral support from someone you can turn to if you need to have a chat or a conversation. Me and Ben are basically mates now, he’s been amazing.”

JETS is a separate strand of the government’s Work and Health Programme (WHP).

www.a-r-k-clothing.com

Normalising grief and opening conversations

Grief Awareness week ran from 2nd – 8th December, and the theme for this year was ‘to open conversations and normalise grief’.

The Good Grief Trust want to break the taboo around grief and get everyone talking to ensure it becomes an easier topic, raising awareness of the support available to us.

Our Able Futures team explains more about some of the emotions we might experience during the grieving process on our website: www.able-futures.co.uk

To find out more, visit www.able-futures.co.uk

When we lose someone close to us, we can experience a whole host of thoughts and feelings that can be difficult to cope with.

It is a natural response to the loss of someone close to you and it can be very challenging to deal with. It doesn’t just appear as one emotion, it can manifest itself in a range of different feelings.

Able Futures can help you manage your mental health at work so you can enjoy more good days!

Getting to know you...

Francis

Stanton,

Operations Manager for Able Futures

This month, we’re putting Francis Stanton in the spotlight, Operations Manager for Able Futures.

“I’ve worked with Ingeus coming up for 11 years this July, starting my journey on the Work and Health Programme in the North West back in 2011, and since covering a variety of Operational and Project Management roles.

My current role is Operations Manager for Able Futures, where I am responsible for the overall performance and service delivery of the contract. We have amazingly talented and knowledgeable staff, working hard every day to support participants across the UK who access our service to receive support with their mental health.

The last few years have been a challenge for everyone due to the pandemic, and the impact it has had on the nation’s mental health and wellbeing. I am exceptionally proud of my team’s response to supporting over 13,000 participants during this time and their continued support, as people move back into a workplace environment.

One aspect I love about this job, is that every single participant gives us direct feedback on the service they have received. Taking the opportunity to read this individual feedback is heart-warming and a daily reminder of why we do the job we do. Often, participants comment on how they were at such a low point, but with the help, guidance and empowerment from our expert team, they were able to develop the skills and techniques to overcome the challenges they faced. That is something I have always loved about Ingeus - the ability of our people to support our participants to progress and improve their lives. It’s amazing to see.

Summer or Winter?

Winter. Christmas, snow and a big coat please. I have too many freckles for too much Sun!

Chocolate or sweets? Both please.

Night or morning? Morning, as long as there’s coffee.

City or countryside?

City, love a good city break or trip into town.

Cats or dogs?

Cats. Inconsiderate dog walkers have put me off dogs (pick it up!).

Dressed up or casual?

Casual. Although lockdown has given a false sense of security, shorts are a lot more forgiving than trousers!

Phone calls or emails?

Both, vital we keep it personable with phone and video when working remotely, but don’t over do it when a simple email would suffice.

Books or films?

Love books, but more chance of an audio book while I’m out walking.

Night out or night in? Night in, can’t do hangovers!

Holidays or home comforts?

I’d say home comforts but I definitely look forward to a holiday.

We asked Francis to answer life’s essential ‘this or that’ questions: