“It’s me — Kerry. I was on Growing Talent.”

I looked again.

How had I not recognised that smile?

Kerry joined our Growing Talent programme in the summer of 2023. Shortly afterwards, she secured a role and took her first step back into employment.

Unfortunately, the night shifts proved unsustainable, and she had to move on.
But here’s the important part.

The confidence, skills and mindset she developed during the programme didn’t disappear when the job did.

She used what she had learned to secure a new position with her current employer.

Three years later, she’s still there — and thriving.

That’s the real value of workplace training.

Not just improving performance today, but creating lasting impact for years to come.

When organisations invest in developing people as whole human beings, the returns extend far beyond the workplace.

Communication. Resilience. Emotional intelligence. Confidence. Wellbeing. Nutrition. Problem-solving.

These aren’t just workplace skills. They’re life skills.

And when people grow, businesses grow too.

Every organisation wants stronger performance, better engagement and higher retention. The foundation for all three is investing in people in a meaningful way.

Because the best training doesn’t just help someone do their current job better.
It changes what they believe they’re capable of.

What training, lesson or experience has stayed with you throughout your career and still influences how you work today?

#Leadership#LearningAndDevelopment#WorkplaceTraining#PeopleDevelopment#EmployeeEngagement#FutureOfWork#GrowingTalent#LeadershipDevelopment

This week I watched historian Lucy Worsley’s account of the events leading to American Independence, and it struck me how often history presents recurring themes.

In 1765, Britain faced significant financial pressures and sought to increase revenue through taxation.

The Stamp Act introduced taxes on legal documents in the American colonies, despite strong opposition from many colonists who argued they had little influence over the decisions affecting them.

The Act was later repealed, but further taxes followed. Tensions grew. Voices calling for discussion and compromise were often drowned out by those who would not listen. Warnings about the potential consequences were not always heeded.

In 1770, tensions erupted in what became known as the Boston Massacre.

The dispute escalated further, eventually leading to American Independence.

History never repeats itself exactly. Different times, different circumstances, different challenges.

Yet certain questions seem timeless:

👉 How should governments respond when public trust begins to decline?
👉 Is raising taxes enough to solve financial problems, or must growth be part of the answer?
👉 How well do governments listen to opposing views? – actually, how often do you?
👉 At what point does disagreement become division?
👉 What happens when warning signs are ignored?

History may not repeat itself, but it often rhymes.

What historical lesson remains most relevant today for you?

🎵 “Getting to know you, getting to know all about you…” 🎵

No matter where we are in our careers today, most of us can remember the fear of the ‘interview’.

❓ What will the interviewer be like?
❓ What questions will they ask?
❓ Will my mind suddenly go completely blank?

With time and experience, many of us learn how to manage those nerves. We develop confidence and find ways to quiet that inner voice of doubt.

But for people who have been knocked by life, confidence isn’t always something that returns easily.

I’ve seen the same barriers come up time and time again:

📄 The CV.
🪑 The interview.

So, what if we removed them?

At Growing Talent, that’s exactly what we’ve been doing for the past 12 years.

During that time, people have not only secured employment but progressed into management roles, built successful careers, and even launched their own businesses.

Our Getting to Know You event is where that journey begins.

The event opens with Spotlight on Employers, where employers share their own career journeys—the twists, turns, setbacks and successes that led them to where they are today. They also offer their personal top tip for impressing any employer.

👉 The result? Applicants gain genuine insight into the people behind the job titles and realise that career paths are rarely straight lines.

Then comes our London Challenge.

Working in teams, participants devise a solution to improve a part of London and just 45 minutes to prepare a presentation.

The creativity, collaboration and energy in the room were incredible.

When employers returned, they weren’t simply assessing interview answers—they were watching people:

✅ Solve problems
✅ Work as a team
✅ Communicate ideas
✅ Deliver to a deadline

These are qualities that often remain hidden in a traditional interview.

The event finished with networking, conversations, laughter, new connections and, most importantly, growing confidence.

A huge thank you to all the employers and applicants who joined us and those behind the scenes.

A special thank you to Michael for stopping by to say ‘hello’. Part of Growing Talent in 2016, he is still with the same employer. Now managing a team responsible for welcome services within a major building.

Michael’s journey reminds us why Growing Talent matters.

The best outcome of all?

Every applicant who attended wants to return for the next stage of the process—our “Slow Dating” selection event!

They’ll arrive confident, connected and ready to show employers who they really are.

Because when we create opportunities for people to be seen beyond their CV, amazing things happen.

Adam Bushell
Matthew Izekor
#DavidSteeds
Bal Virdee MBE
#CIS-Security
ISS A/S
#NGBailey
SPS

#GrowingTalent #EmploymentSupport #Recruitment #SocialImpact #HiringDifferently #InclusiveRecruitment #SkillsForLife #CareerDevelopment #LondonJobs #CommunityImpact #OpportunityForAll

What would you say to the thousands of men and women who fought for you to have the right to vote but you choose not to use it?

That was the main question in my mind this morning.

Could I look them in the eye and say:

👉 None of the options meet all of my beliefs – or maybe

👉 My vote won’t make any difference – or maybe

👉 I could not be bothered

Would any of those answers be acceptable to those who gave so much over so many years to win the right to vote?

I believed not.

But here’s the thing:

💥 No one will agree with everything any political party stands for – but could one party make a positive difference more than others?

💥 If everyone didn’t vote because they felt it didn’t matter – they are giving their voice to someone else. Potentially a party they really wouldn’t want in control will get in – even with a low turnout.

💥 Would you be bothered if your life was made so much worse by a party of your choice not getting in? Edmund Burke said “evil triumphs when good men and women are silent”.

So, if you are choosing not to vote, please think again.

A shout out to fabulous ChatGPT for the photo – I definitely did not look that polished at 7.30am this morning!!!!!

#righttovote #democracy

UK politics feels messy right now. 

Divided. Loud. Exhausting.

Some people still debate and listen. Others just shout people down who don’t agree with them. 

Many have switched off completely.

Turnout is falling—from the 2024 General Election to recent by-elections.
And every time someone stays home, they’re still making a choice… just not an active one.

Because when you don’t vote, you don’t “opt out.”
You hand your voice to someone else.

Voting isn’t just a habit. It’s a right people fought—hard—to give you.

It wasn’t always there.

Before 1918, not all men could vote. Power sat with landowners.
Women? They fought for decades.

From 1866 onwards, campaigners pushed for change.
Some used peaceful debate and lobbying (Suffragists). 

Others took more extreme action—risking prison, hunger strikes, even being force-fed (Suffragettes).

Families sacrificed everything.

During World War I, women kept the country running doing jobs men traditionally had done.
Afterwards, some finally gained the right to vote.

It wasn’t until 1928, voting rights were equal for both men and women. That’s 62 years of struggle— to give you the vote today

So, here’s the question:

Are you going to say voting is pointless… or are you going to use a right others gave everything for?

  

Local elections are on 7 May 2026.

Don’t sit this one out.

Ever wonder if your resilience muscle is strong enough to juggle leading your team, hitting targets, meeting deadlines, and still showing up for family and friends?

Does your team have what it takes to resolve conflict, embrace neuro-inclusion, and thrive — not just survive — under pressure?

Do Sunday nights feel heavy with the thought of Monday morning?

How soundly are you really sleeping?

Where are your non-negotiable boundaries — and how often do you cross them?

We don’t always analyse exactly where our head is at when leading others. Time to reflect, analyse and take action. Agree?

🙁 UK politics feels messy right now. 

🙁 Divided. Loud. Exhausting.

Some people still debate and listen. Others just shout people down who don’t agree with them. Many have switched off completely.

Turnout is falling—from the 2024 General Election to 2026 by-elections.

And every time someone stays home, they’re still making a choice… just not an active one.

👉 Because when you don’t vote, you don’t “opt out.” You hand your voice to someone else.

Voting isn’t just a habit. It’s a right people fought—hard—to give you.

It wasn’t always there.

Before 1918, not all men could vote. Power sat with landowners.

Women? They fought for decades.

From 1866 onwards, campaigners pushed for change.

Some used peaceful debate and lobbying (Suffragists). 

Others took more extreme action—risking prison, hunger strikes, even being force-fed (Suffragettes).

Families sacrificed everything.

During World War I, women kept the country running doing jobs men traditionally had done.

Afterwards, some finally gained the right to vote.

It wasn’t until 1928, voting rights were equal for both men and women. That’s 62 years of struggle—just so you could have a say.

So, here’s the question:

❓ Are you going to say voting is pointless… or are you going to use a right people gave everything for ❓

Answer it honestly.

Local elections are on 7 May 2026. Don’t sit this one out.

I’ve voted in every single election since I reached the voting age. Not because I’m political but because I respect those who went before me fighting for the right I have today. How about you?

Well—today it dropped one on my head.

I run a lot of virtual coaching sessions, so lighting matters. Big time.

Naturally, right before a session, my main light decided to quit. Perfect timing.

Cue mild panic.

Checked the plugs. Checked the extension. Checked the manual like it might suddenly confess. Everything looked fine. Time was ticking.

Luckily, my coachee prefers cameras off, so I got away with looking like I was auditioning for a moody documentary.

Session done (and actually great), I went full detective mode—moving furniture, untangling cables, questioning my life choices.

And then… there it was.

The plug.

Not plugged in.

Turns out, during a past decluttering spree, I’d neatly rerouted all my cables… and forgotten to reconnect this one. The light had been surviving on battery this whole time.

So, what’s the takeaway?

When your brain is sprinting through chaos, stop trying to outrun it.

Pause. Breathe. Then look again—you’ll usually spot what you missed the first time.

When was the last time you gave yourself that pause?

I’m shocked… are you?

A piece in the Money section of a broadsheet this weekend, written by Benedict J Smith, made me do a double take.

Surely this can’t be happening. Where is the public outcry? Shouldn’t this be front page news?

The article revealed that tenants who have lived in their homes for years are being evicted to make way for homeless families from a neighbouring borough — effectively pushing them into homelessness themselves.

👉 Make that make sense.

Where is the logic?

Take Su Su Myat and her husband. They’ve lived in their flat for 16 years in the London Borough of Richmond. Their private landlord sold the block to Westminster City Council for around £16 million.

In March, all tenants were issued Section 21 eviction notices and told they must leave by 10 May 2026.

The UK’s housing crisis is well known — but is this really the right solution?

🤔 What do you think?

#DecisionsWithoutLogic

Commencing in May, Growing Talent offers a beacon of hope for something different for unemployed Londoners.

• No endless applications against hundreds of others
• No getting ignored in cv sifting because you don’t have relevant skills
• No interviews which lead nowhere

We do things differently.

To spread the word, I’ve spent this morning scheduling an information campaign to reach unemployed Londoners across YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram and Twitter (or should I say X!)

Check out the video below to get a taster of what’s to come.

Let me know what you think.