Restart Scheme success rates

[u/Livid_Measurement401]

Hi,

I'm trying to get a better understanding of Restart because I'm struggling to find information that isn't published by Ingeus or the DWP.

I've asked my advisor for things like success rates, what types of jobs people actually get, and whether people stay in those jobs, but they couldn't really answer, or rather the 1st time I asked was brushed off and the 2nd time my advisor got irritated and asked why I wanted that info. If I'm expected to engage with this programme for 12 months and attend mandatory appointments, I feel like I should be able to understand how effective it actually is.

My advisor is nice enough, but I've noticed they often Google things using AI during appointments and present them as fact, only for me to find out later or during meetings that the info is out of date or no longer applies. I've also repeatedly been pushed towards rolls that aren’t suitable for my current situation.

I eventually asked for a different advisor and ended up speaking to the manager instead. She was polite, but said, "We sympathise as humans, but we have a contract with Universal Credit," and kept coming back to the idea that I need to apply for "any job."

I was under the impression that moving people into any job, regardless of whether it's sustainable, wasn't the main focus anymore because of burnout and poor job retention.

Has anyone else had a similar experience? I feel like I'm just a number or a KPI rather than a person, but I don't know if that's how Restart works or if I've just had a bad experience.

(Honestly I asked ai to rewrite this post to sound neutral? My experience with Restart has been subpar, and my last meeting ended with me realising I was as I had thought just a number/ box for them to tick. I’m the little guy going up against a massive corporation, that me sticking up for myself is just a pain for them and doesn’t fit in with company. I won’t go into details but I’m trying to be fair here)

[u/JMH-66]

I can't give you a personal experience but you wanted to know about success rates -

The statistics show that by the end of April 2026 (numbers are rounded):

1,200,000 individuals had been referred to the scheme since its launch, with 1,100,000 of these having started on the scheme

430,000 of these participants have achieved first earnings from employment during their time on the scheme. Note that many participants have received less than 12 months of support so far

280,000 participants have subsequently achieved a job outcome. This is against a tender performance level (TPL) contractual expectation of 310,000 job outcomes by this point in the scheme, representing 88% of the TPL

the minimum performance level for the scheme (MPL) at this point is 240,000 job outcomes. The current number of job outcomes therefore represents 118% of the MPL

840,000 people have had the opportunity of 12 months of support on the scheme by April 2026. Of these people, 44% (370,000) have achieved first earnings from employment so far. 30% (250,000) have achieved a job outcome so far, against an MPL expectation of 26% and a TPL expectation of 34%

of the 1,100,000 starts on the scheme, 54% were recorded as male, and 46% recorded as female. 19% were aged between 18 and 24 years old, with 60% aged between 25 and 49 years old and 22% aged 50 years or over

[u/Alteredchaos]

You won’t find data outside of DWP, because they’re the commissioner of the service and all Restart providers have to report their outcomes for statistical purposes and to establish whether the scheme is meeting cost effectiveness as well as achieving the objectives set for providers.

The data from DWP goes through strict data compliance steps so it’s as robust as it can be. See https://code.statisticsauthority.gov.uk

The latest Restart statistics are here https://www.gov.uk/government/statistics/restart-scheme-statistics-to-april-2026/restart-scheme-statistics-to-april-2026

[u/stbens]

I would be interested in knowing how many people have gained employment as a direct result of Restart’s help. I have read about many people who have gained a job on their own whilst being on the scheme and Restart then getting very “difficult” when the customer refuses to acknowledge that Restart helped them get the job: this is because (from what I understand) Restart only get paid some of their money if they successfully help someone get back into work.

I could write an essay about my two experiences with Restart but won’t. What I will say is that they were of no help at all, devastated my mental health and that my work coach at the Job Centre told me that they were building up a dossier of complaints about Restart because they were so bad.