New Enterprise Allowance scheme - My story

Andy2013

You seem to be focused and know what your aiming for which is a great start.

My challenge to you is come back to this message in 6 months and see if your of the same opinions about what your experience was , compared to what it should be.

Firstly complaining gets you no where at my JC, my advisor actually said " no I don't think you will get any more help than you have " when I mentioned it to him , and the people at my local scheme were totally disinterested when I did phone them!!

All of the points you raise as to what we "Should get" is very different to the reality and please don't think mine is a one off, many will back me on this.

Your points on WTC are great in your circumstances but most applicants vary because a lot do earn in the previous tax year which lowers or totally erases your hope of getting it.

I went onto NEA for that very "Helping hand" and got pretty much none, 1 call ,2 emails and an induction was all I have had........ is that a helping hand????

The guys on here have been more motivation and help.

This scheme is a way of removing people from JSA or work programme and lowering the figures for unemployment , of the 6 on my induction 2 openly admit they did nothing as it was free money and no sign on ,and I am the only remaining person still trading, and we are not even at the 6 month stage as yet.

TrueBlue1965

NEA OUT, Your not really on NEA until you have completed your business plan and you start getting your payments. Clearly, you never got that fare with NEA.

Let me get his right. At your first interview with your NEA adviser/mentor. You where asked to write a business plan and that was it? No info on what to expect from a NEA mentor? You where just told to come back in 8 weeks with your completed business plan and that was it? Did you not ask for help and support or ask for your next appointment? No contact number or E-mail address?

I have my first appointment with my NEA scheme on Thursday. (Does happen to have the biggest number on new businesses start-ups in the country since the NEA scheme started. Also claimed to have the best success rate from those who have gone though NEA in still being in business after a year). So, hopefully, my scheme have got things right. I know what the scheme is asking for from there mentors. So, i will be asking lots of questions and expecting what is claimed to be on offer from the scheme. If you dont ask and push. You dont normally get.

Sounds like you never had a mentor Andy. Or at least. If you did. Not one who was interested in doing the job of guiding you forward with your new business. Shame but at least it sounds like your doing ok and moving forward.

I agree that the scheme is aimed at getting people off the dole. A way for a few to help themselves is the way i,ve been looking at it. At least those who have a viable business idea can with hard work make a better life for themselves. What surprises me from what your saying is that 6 people in your group had viable business idea but only yourself followed your idea though. The others could not be bothered. Guess some people dont want to work for a living and potentially create a better life for themselves.

Will let you know how i get on at my first interview on Thursday.

WantToBeSE

Hmm, so as soon as i decide to get off the NEA and find a part time job, i get an email from an agency who have exactly the same USP as me, asking if i would consider joining them to cover staff sickness! She also said that regular hours would have regular work for me depending on my rates! :j
So i emailed her my rates and available times, and made sure that i enforced the fact that i am flexible on both.

Seriously, you couldn't make this up could you!

Financially, as long as i am working 16+ hours (as a single parent) and earning at least NMW then i will be OK.
Obviously, this is NOT my long term aim, i aim to be working a 30+ hour week, and be thinking of world domination

This_Year

WantToBeSE wrote: »

Obviously, this is NOT my long term aim, i aim to be working a 30+ hour week, and be thinking of world domination

OI get out of my space. I'm going for world domination too. But not until maybe 2 years of trading...

Trueblue1965
I'm glad that your NEA is progressing; others including me, have encountered a brick wall. Maybe I'm being a bit over-sensitive when I read your "haw haw I've got an interview with NEA" posts but jobcentres DO vary in knowledge and experience. You seem to have a good one: hang in there. Personally I'm going it alone as of Monday.

It's simple. I have an idea, NEA should contact me to discuss it. They don't. They should approve my business plan (99% written) but they've never contacted me despite me and my adviser chasing them over 6 weeks. I have my customers lined up who are getting antsy, I have my stock and I know what to do. The only thing i'm missing out on is the money per week - my OH has run 4 businesses in the past and is perfectly happy to help and advise me although keeping his distance as it's "my baby"

I truly wish you the best.

s450

@pinkypoopydoo and @Andy2013 many thanks for your replies.
I will ask my adviser at the next appointment. Hopefully he won't have anything against my idea of wanting to start my own business.
I will keep you informed.
Bye

pinkypoopydoo

s450 wrote: »

@pinkypoopydoo and @Andy2013 many thanks for your replies.
I will ask my adviser at the next appointment. Hopefully he won't have anything against my idea of wanting to start my own business.
I will keep you informed.
Bye

Your adviser shouldn;t have an opinion, one way or another. It's the NEA mentor who has the final say on whether you are accepted onto the scheme - if you have a sensible business plan, then you will probably be given the chance to build your business plan. It's only once it's signed off that you get to sign off JSA and onto the NEA payments.

andyscott

s450 wrote: »

@pinkypoopydoo and @Andy2013 many thanks for your replies.
I will ask my adviser at the next appointment. Hopefully he won't have anything against my idea of wanting to start my own business.
I will keep you informed.
Bye

You said in an earlier post about people on JSA not been able to afford to go self employed, Im guessing your planning on going for the loan then.

It may go against your application when they see that you only moved to Uk recently.

This_Year

s450 wrote: »

@pinkypoopydoo and @Andy2013 many thanks for your replies.
I will ask my adviser at the next appointment. Hopefully he won't have anything against my idea of wanting to start my own business.
I will keep you informed.
Bye

good luck. Hope NEA works for you.

TrueBlue1965

NEA OUT, am i correct in thinking that you/we should get 1 hour each week of support from a mentor while attemting to write a business plan? Then, once excepted on to the scheme after the business plan is excepted. A further 1-2 hours support should be in place for the first 6 months of trading? This is what is being suggested in everything i,ve read and i,ve been told this is the case by my JCP adviser and my provider of the NEA.

Where you not given a mentor at your first appointment with NEA? Did you not get a next appointment with a mentor after being excepted on to the first part of the scheme to write your business plan? How did you get on to the main part of NEA without a mentor? From what im told. The mentor is the one who decides if you have a reasonable business plan or not. Without the mentors say so. You dont go on to the man part of NEA. After getting your business plan excepted by who ever it was. Again, did you not get a next appointment with your mentor for your monthly support? This would be normal on any scheme. Its even the case with our JCP advisers.

Personally, i will be pushing for a next appointment after every meeting with my adviser.

Not sure why anybody would say no thanks to £33 a week when your building up a new business. Smacks of a bad business choice to me but each to there own and its only money i guess.

Do you see the problem i have with what your suggesting. However, i except that in all walks of life. People say one thing and do another. People break appointments and make mistakes. People let other people down for no good reason oher than they could not be bothered So, if what your suggesting is true. Then, lets hope your experience of NEA is one of a few bad examples and that others dont have the same experiences.

Good luck with you business.

exclamation_mark

I'm questioning the legality of the NEA programme. I recently asked to go on the programme and have found it very encouraging, however the first question I asked was about continuing to search for work. I was told that we didn't have to continue with our job search. However, the following week at the business plan workshop we were told we did have to continue looking for work because we are receiving job seekers allowance.
This brings about a paradox: We cannot be focused on finding a job if we are focused on starting a business, and the job centre knows we are trying to start a business, so our job searches cannot be serious searches. If we have to sit in front of our adviser every two weeks and 'pretend' we've been looking for a job, we know we're lying, they know we're lying, and we know that they know we're lying, yet they're letting us get away with it.
So the question is: Is it legal? They are encouraging us to break the law by offering a programme which requires that we break the law.
I'm actually really, seriously, p'd off that I had to quit the scheme, but the bottom line is that the job centre bully us into doing things that do not help us get a job while at the same time offer us a chance at self employment on condition that we subject ourselves to more of their abuse at the most crucial point of our business planning.
Surely if the government is offering such a scheme, then there must be a provision in law that allows such a scheme to exist, and if not then the entire NEA programme is illegal.