What Happens at an Advice Session with Futures?

Get in touch to arrange an online or telephone appointment. Some of our centres are currently closed to the public, in line with Government guidelines.

If you’re thinking about contacting us for the first time, you might be wondering what’s in store. We know that doing something new can be a bit daunting and we want you to be prepared to get the most out of the time with your adviser. We’ve broken down the process to give you an insight into what to expect when you first come to see us.

Getting in touch

There are loads of ways you might contact us to begin with, including:

  • Uploading your CV for review and coming in for a follow up appointment
  • Being referred to us by someone else, such as your work coach
  • Ringing us and making your first appointment by pho to the relevant number and being invited in for a follow up session
  • Meeting us at our pop-up shop during a community event and talking to an adviser on the day
  • Or, simply coming in to one of our offices on a whim and deciding to stay and chat to an adviser

Whatever path leads you to an advice session, the meeting itself will follow the same format.

Arriving at the centre

It is important to note that we welcome chaperones in advice sessions. If you feel more comfortable bringing a friend, parent or family member with you, that’s fine. You can also bring a translator if you have access to one.

When you arrive, you’ll be greeted by our friendly reception staff. If you have an appointment, they’ll ask you to take a seat in the waiting are and will let your adviser know you’ve arrived.

If you’re dropping in and don’t have an appointment, the reception team will ask a few questions to decide which team is best placed to help and support you (don’t worry, they’re really nice!). At this point, you may be able to request an adviser of a particular gender and we’ll do what we can to help with language barriers. You’ll be asked to take a seat in the waiting area until an adviser is available to see you.

The session

Your adviser will introduce themselves and let you know everything we can help with, this will also include an explanation of our confidentiality and safeguarding policies and how long the session will last (about an hour and 15). When the formalities over, you’ll be asked about what you want to get out of the session. It’s important to remember that these sessions are all about you, any advice given is tailored to you and the session is very much led by you and what you want to do.

If you want to review your CV, talk about the types of jobs you might be good at, find out how to search for jobs you’re interested in or practice your interview skills, your adviser will be happy to help.

Some examples of things people have come in for:

  • “I have no idea what I’m good at or what job I want to do.”
  • “I know what I want to do, but I don’t know how to get there.”
  • “I’m leaving school soon and don’t have a plan for next year.”
  • “I didn’t do very well at school and it’s holding me back now I’m an adult.”
  • “I’ve been unemployed for a while and I’m not sure how to get back on track.”

Our advisers are equipped to deal with all of this and more, just ask!

Not just careers advice

While we’re experts in all things jobs, training and education, we can also help you to overcome a variety of factors which may be standing in the way of your success. This could be mental health difficulties, disability, homelessness or a history of offending, our teams work tirelessly to ensure that nothing stands between you and success.

Keeping in touch

Before you leave your first session, you’llcomplete an action plan with your adviser, this includes two achievable goals for you to complete in your own time (this could be to have a look at jobs online, or to have a go at answering some common interview questions). You don’t have to see us again following your session if you don’t want to, but you can keep in touch with your adviser by email, text, phone and in person too. We’ll also contact you from time to time to check up on your progress and see if there’s anything we can do to support you further. Of course, you are free to opt out of this if you wish to.

Ready to get started? Get in touch.