Deirdre O’ Quigley, 46 was emotionally depressed for a long period of time because she had two bereavements in her family as well as being made redundant in August 2008.

Gill Smith, 31, was out of work for many years due to health problems and joined the Pathways programme at TNG to help improve her confidence.

Katie, 20, from Wallasey in Merseyside, had worked in retail, particularly customer services, at a filling station and later as a part time domestic cleaner prior to joining TNG. She particularly enjoyed working with customers so was keen to get back into a retail environment when she joined in October 2009.

Paul, 46, from Birkenhead, joined TNG on the IAP BET programme having been unemployed for 18 months. He had experience working as a security guard and had already occupied numerous voluntary roles, including teaching sign language and working as an outreach worker for a church.

Robert, 22 from Stockport, had been unemployed for twelve months before joining TNG on the Flexible New Deal programme. Having been out of work for some time, his confidence levels were low and he struggled to find the motivation to look for work.

Simon joined the TNG ESF programme having been out of work for twelve months. He was de-motivated and, due to a bad experience with his last employer, could not see a way forward. Simon prefers to work alone and outside, which means his work options are limited, but with support from TNG he was hoping to find a route back to work.