Clearly the £130bn pa of welfare spending is not being well allocated then

They are concentrating on giving folk enough to eat rather than training them- I dont think they even have any discretionary funds available but there is some for those made redundant.
FWIW they are generally against training as they know anyone training will complete the course rather than get the job and its highly unlikely you would get permission to attend a college course whilst on benefits – not impossible but very very unlikely. I dont agree but the reality is very much different from what people expect

Essentially the JC+ are the gatekeepers to the benefits system and their role is to ensure you met the criteria to claim benefits
they are no longer in any meaningful sense there to help you.

It started under labour so not really a political point everyone wants to talk tough on benefit scroungers yet when presented with a real case study they want to help

None of that is meant to be a dig at you.

Plenty of call for sparkys mates down south, just stick an advert in any electrical wholesalers offering your services.

This is the sort of thing I had in mind. Allows the sparky to get more done as his mate does the basics and the qualified ‘leccy connects it up or checks your work.

JY noted, I don’t want to derail the OPs thread.

EDIT OP I think there is more work down South so if a move is what it takes to get the training done so be it. Once you have your tickets you can decide what to do next

Hi, this suggestion may be a bit redundant as you’ve now gone from north east to keswick but….Crisis is national charity for single homeless and they have a set-up in newcastle (01912220622). They offer training, education and progression services; also have strong links with multiple other organisations. Without getting into detail on a public forum, if you contact them they will explain how they can help you.
If you have email account and want to know more, send me a message.
I’m a long standing volunteer with them.
Good luck.

If you got further south and considered plumbing…….

In Scotland we have an adult training scheme for older apprentices. One day in college every fortnight and you work/get paid the rest of the time.
You do a years experience as a sparks mate and then the 3-5 year ATS, at the end your a qualified/experienced sparky.
Would be worth asking if the English JIB have a similar scheme.

OP – I can’t afford to pay you mate but I’d happily teach you to drystone wall and could introduce you to farmers who may want a bit of labour. I’m in Swaledale and the riding ain’t bad either! Email in profile

There are some really touching posts in this thread and they are inspiring me to get off my backside, stop feeling sorry for myself and make a move to improve my current life.

Best of luck to sharkattack, I hope you find something to make you happy, financially secure and fulfilled.

Love this thread.

Almost feels like we need it as a sticky to give people somewhere to go when they are down on their luck or in need of a leg up.

NT apprentice schemes are quite often weighted towards new entrants, so don’t feel a lack of experience a barrier.
Volunteering with NT is often a good way in> casual labourer > seasonal > project > permanent.
You won’t get rich, but you’ll live and work somewhere great with other rewards.

Sharky, if you want to go down the electrical route, I have all the books needed for the domestic installation and Inspection and Test including 17th edition. You’ll need to get the amendments as I haven’t kept it up to date.
If you do a sparky course, you would need these and they are invaluable for when you’re on site.

You’re welcome to have them all. I’m in Suffolk but I’m sure there’s a way to get them to you.
Email in profile.

Re-read my previous post and just to be clear, those two statements in my previous post should be more independent of each other. The apprenticeships generally require no previous experience.
Alternatively, volunteering can open the doors to progression through non-trainee roles.

I feel like I should finish this thread off since so many people contributed to it. I don’t want to leave it hanging but I didn’t wan’t to constantly update it with gory details or during the long periods where nothing was happening.

It’s been an eventful couple of months that’s for sure. I’ve spent way too many nights sleeping in the van in mostly unknown areas. You can’t really rest because you’re always scared something will happen or you’ll have to move. So you always feel exhausted and of course, you stink. This unusually hot weather has been a nightmare for body odour and general van stench.

The van had an MOT which it failed. I then had to wait for parts then a repair and retest. I could not drive during this time so spent around 48 hours on a bleak industrial estate while trying to pretend like I wasn’t there. I had to accept financial assistance at this point as I was wiped out. This was a pretty miserable period.

Oh, then I got foot rot. I had a pain in the ball of my foot which felt like a blister so I ignored it. Then overnight while sleeping on a mates floor it ballooned into a bright red, swollen monstrosity. It felt like it was on fire and I couldn’t put my foot on the ground at all. I hopped into a walk in centre and got an inspection and some antibiotics. I’d picked up some kind of skin infection and the Dr. predicted at least 4 to 5 more days of pain and swelling. He wasn’t wrong. You know when you stand on a plug? Imagine if the plug had 3 knives instead of prongs. Nothing I could do but codeine and elevation.

During this time I went somewhere that I was trying to avoid. My grandparents cat infested, one bedroom bungalow. They’ve got just enough room for my sleeping mat but at least I could put my foot up and take pain killers all day. All I had to do was endure the itchy eyes and sneezing triggered by the presence of felines. Once the pain and swelling went down, that’s when the skin came off. All of it. Like a big crispy pancake of dead yellow flesh. This was a grim week and a half.

Now the good news…

Using nothing but a smartphone and mobile internet I managed to find a full time job and somewhere to live.

I used Facebook groups full of bike riders to see if there was any industry jobs going anywhere. I was contacted by a manager of a shop who said their mechanic was leaving and they were looking for a replacement. Luckily I’ve got years of experience but it’s not something I was expecting to go back to. I went in for a chat and that was that, I got a start date.

Then I used Gumtree and Spareroom to start looking for somewhere to live. I’ve been to view some rooms this weekend and paid the deposit on my favourite.

So now I’m sitting in a BnB in Sheffield. I start work on Monday then move into an attic in a big, posh house next week. I’m going to be living with an old couple who seemed cool. I tried to avoid the more lively areas as I’m not up for partying or living in other peoples filth.

So yes there’s been ups and downs. I’ve had a lot of time to sit around and sulk about all the things I’ve done wrong in my life. I’ve done a lot of stupid shit. I’ve never killed anyone or anything like that but I’ve certainly gone the long way around on everything. I’ve always had to make my own mistakes, sometimes multiples times before I learned from them.

Right now though I just feel relieved. I’ve got nothing else to pay for. I’ve got a job that I can’t wait to get stuck into. I don’t have to drive anywhere. I’ve got a bed in a pitch black room and last night I slept for about 12 hours. The soft, pink, raw flesh on my foot is starting to toughen up.

Thanks for reading. Special thanks to everyone that got in touch and offered help and careers advice and tried to point me in the right direction.

I’m off to bed.

Good news, and good luck for Monday.

That’s excellent . Sleep well.

I just found this thread. What an excellent conclusion! Best of luck, OP.

Great news.
You’ll be laughing about your former exploits and looking back with fond memorys soon.

Awesome ending

Good man and a heartfelt well done.
Sheffield is a great centre for trail riding so you could use that as a way of expanding your network.
If your employer was ok with it you could….ahem….*mention* them on the forum – it might generate some additional business.
Would be good if you posted occasional updates on your progress.

Great ending. Good luck in your new job and for the future.

Just read this right through, great to see things are looking up & good luck for the new job on Monday!

Made my night, thanks for sharing.

great news, glad to hear you’re getting back on your feet

(see what I did there?)

Wooo! Best of luck for Monday’s new start….

Excellent news, well done.

Thanks for the update. Congratulations and best of luck in new job!

Fair play pal, keep on truckin’

Great news and a great place to be.

Well played, sharkattack !

<searches for “like” button>

Nice one!

Cool to have a happy ending once in a while…

Result fella! Happy days 🙂

Inspiring stuff. Glad you’re beginning to find your feet (if you excuse the pun!).

Where is the shop? We could use them to show support for his efforts

Nice one Sharkattack, I love a happy ending 🙂

Just read the whole thread. So glad everything worked out for you shark. How’s the job going? Really great to see how this place comes together to help people in a time of need. Gotta love STW.

Best of luck, good to see you’re sorted.

Awesome, great news.

Just goes to show what a resilient person you are, hope you are not smelly now 😉

Good stuff mate. Best of luck!

Great news. It’s a cliche but how a person responds to adversity is the real test and the making of a man. Job and home sorted. Onwards.

Big smiles all round here Sharkattack – really pleased to hear this, well done and I hope this is a real turning point

‘But when I said that nothing had been done I erred in one important matter. We had definitely committed ourselves and were halfway out of our ruts. We had put down our passage money–booked a sailing to Bombay. This may sound too simple, but is great in consequence. Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back, always ineffectiveness. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, the providence moves too. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one’s favor all manner of unforeseen incidents, meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamt would have come his way. I learned a deep respect for one of Goethe’s couplets:

Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it.
Boldness has genius, power and magic in it!’

WH Murray