New Enterprise Allowance scheme - My story

rosered1963

Truegho wrote: »

But is this NEA Business Plan scheme really compulsory for people who have already tested the waters with their own business, and have discovered that their business has already started to make money, despite the fact that they haven't availed themselves of the NEA, the loan etc.?

NEA is for new business ideas only that have not started up yet.

rosered1963

andyscott wrote: »

I was sacked 9 months ago from my work after 12 years working since I had my kid.

Since then I have applied for lots of jobs, sent cvs, telephoned employers but had no luck. I hate going to Job Centre but 2 weeks ago I found out about New Enterprise Allowance.


I spoke with an advisor last week and they explained how it worked and told me I would have to get a business plan ready first then arrange an extended appointment to speak with an advisor. Fair enough.

i have always want to run a business but I left school with little qualifications and ended up in poorly paid job so I could never afford to set up a business.

I decided this was my big chance, came across this forum and spent a week using every spare minute looking a posts.

So I go into Jobcentre today and said I want to make an extended appointment to speak about NEA. Advisor tells me that a manager has knocked it back.

WHAT????

I have never officialy talked or applied for it
Never handed any financial forecast
Never handed and business plan
Not even said what type of business

I said this to the advisor and asked why I had been knocked back as I met all criteria for been suitable to apply for it.

He said does not know but will get manager to give me a call.

Im normally really calm but I was raging. I was about to go back and ask to make an official complaint, probably no real point in it though, they would probably end up sending me on a volounteer course doing 40 hours per week and just getting basic benefits.

I dont have family or friends that can just loan out a couple of hundred and bank wont entertain me.

Hello Andy.

Th jobcentre can't "knock you back" . Find the address of your nearest Enterprise Agency and ring them. Tell them what you have planned and when you have done that, get them to help you liaise with the jobcentreplus. My jobcentre knew nothing about NEA - none of the staff - I found out about it via the internet. They were not keen to help me at all at first, but once they knew about it, are now keen for me to sign off and get started.

Don't be put off. Contact you local enterprise agency, write some notes of your ideas down for yourself and go and see them.

PS Andy - the only way the jobcentre can refuse you is if you are on the Work Programme as apparently people on that programme do not qualify for EAS. I found that out today from the Chief Exec of our enterprise agency.

PPS - I wouldn't bother to complain to the jobcentre as it will serve no purpose

Good luck

Andy2013

Hi guys i am new to this forum but am currently just starting my NEA and was wondering how things were going for you one year on .

My initial feeling about NEA is one of mixed opinions as i personally really needed the help with starting up a business and in november 2012 i started the process with the usual induction and mentor meeting but now at the JSA to NEA switch over point and i have been completely on my own with everything and i the 2 months i have only received 1 email from my " mentor" and this was a total of 9 words checking how i was.

As an individual i am motivated to make this a success so i am not really bothered ,only annoyed that this mentor thing is pretty useless so just a warning to others if your expecting Richard Branson to give you advice !!

I hope to get the loan i am applying for this week so that will be interesting as in the past my finances are a little RBS and i expect this to cause an issue but i have been told the funding company is open to everyone on NEA and will treat you as a busniess propesition so i will update this in time as i find out.
Otherwise the £65 a week is helpful and alongside WTC this is a good figure to take the pressure of you and gives you time to hopefully become self sufficient in the new business.

Any feedback from those on NEA who have been successful and made it work would be great otherwise anyone else who fancies a rant, cheers.

rosered1963

Hi Andy2013.

I am at the same stage as you. The enterprise agency where I am always have a business advisor earmarked for you always there to talk to you and help. Mine has been great and is there for the duration. Also they hold a business club to meet up every week if you like and meet new people and get feedback on how you are doing.

If you don't have that where you are, you could try Business Link.

I have looked for an EAS support thread on here but I can't find one. It would be great to talk to other people about how they are doing once they actually get started.

Good luck

RR

Andy2013

Hi rosered1963

so glad your having more luck than myself, i know i can get advice from my mentor anytime but i was just hoping for a little more input from him si i guess it just depends whom you get assigned to.

Hopefully over the coming months i can see how others are doing and see what the overall feeling is but now its down to the individual to make this work so lets see how we go.

Good luck with your venture also.

rosered1963

Andy2013 wrote: »

Hi rosered1963

so glad your having more luck than myself, i know i can get advice from my mentor anytime but i was just hoping for a little more input from him si i guess it just depends whom you get assigned to.

Hopefully over the coming months i can see how others are doing and see what the overall feeling is but now its down to the individual to make this work so lets see how we go.

Good luck with your venture also.

Thanks Andy 2013.

I have a "mentor" from the Enterprise Agency but only saw him once for 30 minutes - that's it. The person I mean that is helpful is the "business advisor" from the enterprise agency - they should assign you one, although maybe they haven't told you that you actually have one!

None of it seems particularly well organised.

Good luck with your venture and I will subscribe to the thread - it would be nice if people could tell us how they are doing.

x-Princess-Vikki-x

My mentor is very lovely and helpful. However my job centre are not. They don't even understand what NEA is. They think that my mentor should be paying me and not the DWP! Therefore I havent been paid even though they told me to sign off JSA 4 weeks ago. They keep shifting the blame onto my mentor. Phoned Watford.. they say theyve never heard of it.. !!!!!!!!! I dont know what to do. The job centre keep telling me they'll look into it and call me back but they dont. They also ignore my emails. I haven't been paid and I'm stuck now. My mentor has even tried talking sense into them and they just ignore us and refuse to pay me NEA as they dont think its their job to do so?!!!

SailorSam

I think it may have been the original Enterprise Allowance scheme that i had a go at in my 20s, so that's 30yrs ago now. They had training courses 6/9/12mths long in a variety of trades. I trained for a Motor Mechanic but they had, bricklaying; plumbing; welding; carpentry; hairdressing the list goes on and on. I think at the time we got £40pw and a basic toolkit when we completed the course. Some like me were only doing the training for their own benefit with little idea that they wanted a job at the end. I enjoyed fixing my car and wanted to know more, some on the building courses wanted to perhaps build extensions on their own houses, but lots went into 'proper' jobs. A lot started up as one-man-bands and went self employed.
Rather than paying some of these companies millions to arrange for the unemployed to go into training in the likes of £shop, i think if this type of training were re-introduced it would get more people back in work with a cost not much greater than the benefits which people already get.

WantToBeSE

Hi, i am really glad to have found this thread!

i am a single parent and am on JSA at the moment. I have been thinking about starting up my own business (setting up as a sole trader) for a few months now, but didn't think it was possible, until i heard about the NEA scheme.
My idea is to to become a self-employed cleaner, offering natural based cleaning products.

My local job center has been very unhelpful in regards to info, but i i have researched some free courses that i could take, that offer free information about starting up a new business.

My job center just stare at me vacantly whenever i mention self-employment though, and don't seem to know what to do to help me.

How do i get on the scheme, when they don't seem to want to help me?

rosered1963

WantToBeSE wrote: »

Hi, i am really glad to have found this thread!

i am a single parent and am on JSA at the moment. I have been thinking about starting up my own business (setting up as a sole trader) for a few months now, but didn't think it was possible, until i heard about the NEA scheme.
My idea is to to become a self-employed cleaner, offering natural based cleaning products.

My local job center has been very unhelpful in regards to info, but i i have researched some free courses that i could take, that offer free information about starting up a new business.

My job center just stare at me vacantly whenever i mention self-employment though, and don't seem to know what to do to help me.

How do i get on the scheme, when they don't seem to want to help me?

See here http://www.dwp.gov.uk/adviser/updates/new-enterprise-allowance/

If your job Centre advisor does not know who to refer you to, contact you local enterprise agency and go and see them. I had to do a course with the enterrise agency, and when business plan is finalised and the enterprise agency feels you are ready, they tell the job centre you are "signed over" to use their term. You then go to the jobcentre who give you an award notice of EAS saying when your money will be paid. At that point, and only at that point, the job centre sign you off JSA.