cleaner

housing officer

welfare officer

housing manager

supported living support worker

Mears Group

What is the best part of working at the company?
The Mears premises themselves are modern, high-tech, clean and well maintained. The facilities include a large kitchen area and the physical working environment is generally of a good standard.

However, the positive aspects of the building do not reflect the internal culture. The management structure appears top-heavy, with too many individuals in senior positions and insufficient cohesive leadership. There are strong personality dynamics at play, and in some cases leadership styles can feel self-serving rather than supportive.

Diversity and inclusion are notably lacking, and there is a visible absence of varied perspectives within leadership. The working culture can feel cliquey, with internal politics, back-channel conversations, and a lack of psychological safety. Rather than collaboration, there can be an atmosphere of mistrust and competition.

The overall mood within the workplace feels stagnant. Long-standing staff appear resistant to change, and innovation or fresh ideas do not seem to be actively encouraged. While the facilities are modern, the culture does not match the infrastructure.


What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The Mears premises themselves are modern, high-tech, clean and well maintained. The facilities include a large kitchen area and the physical working environment is generally of a good standard.

However, the positive aspects of the building do not reflect the internal culture. The management structure appears top-heavy, with too many individuals in senior positions and insufficient cohesive leadership. There are strong personality dynamics at play, and in some cases leadership styles can feel self-serving rather than supportive.

Diversity and inclusion are notably lacking, and there is a visible absence of varied perspectives within leadership. The working culture can feel cliquey, with internal politics, back-channel conversations, and a lack of psychological safety. Rather than collaboration, there can be an atmosphere of mistrust and competition.

The overall mood within the workplace feels stagnant. Long-standing staff appear resistant to change, and innovation or fresh ideas do not seem to be actively encouraged. While the facilities are modern, the culture does not match the infrastructure.


What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The Mears premises themselves are modern, high-tech, clean and well maintained. The facilities include a large kitchen area and the physical working environment is generally of a good standard.

However, the positive aspects of the building do not reflect the internal culture. The management structure appears top-heavy, with too many individuals in senior positions and insufficient cohesive leadership. There are strong personality dynamics at play, and in some cases leadership styles can feel self-serving rather than supportive.

Diversity and inclusion are notably lacking, and there is a visible absence of varied perspectives within leadership. The working culture can feel cliquey, with internal politics, back-channel conversations, and a lack of psychological safety. Rather than collaboration, there can be an atmosphere of mistrust and competition.

The overall mood within the workplace feels stagnant. Long-standing staff appear resistant to change, and innovation or fresh ideas do not seem to be actively encouraged. While the facilities are modern, the culture does not match the infrastructure.


What is a typical day like for you at the company?
The Mears premises themselves are modern, high-tech, clean and well maintained. The facilities include a large kitchen area and the physical working environment is generally of a good standard.

However, the positive aspects of the building do not reflect the internal culture. The management structure appears top-heavy, with too many individuals in senior positions and insufficient cohesive leadership. There are strong personality dynamics at play, and in some cases leadership styles can feel self-serving rather than supportive.

Diversity and inclusion are notably lacking, and there is a visible absence of varied perspectives within leadership. The working culture can feel cliquey, with internal politics, back-channel conversations, and a lack of psychological safety. Rather than collaboration, there can be an atmosphere of mistrust and competition.

The overall mood within the workplace feels stagnant. Long-standing staff appear resistant to change, and innovation or fresh ideas do not seem to be actively encouraged. While the facilities are modern, the culture does not match the infrastructure.

Mears are 99% PR bullsh*t and 1% substance. 

Mears put in ridiculously stupid, unworkable tenders for contracts (I think they have children in their bid team possibly) then under staff their branches as a result, and push the issues onto their staff and sub contractors, who take the hit for them (both financially and work/life balance) 

Easily the worst IT, HR, Recruitment, and Procurement departments I have ever had the misfortune of 'working' with. I use the term 'working' loosely as I have yet to see any evidence of these departments doing anything useful. Again, when your systems don't work, and your client has been promised something that your employer has failed miserably to provide, it won't be Mears putting themselves out, it'll be you, working later and less efficiently to make up for it. In fact, especially with HR, the term 'department' is very misleading. I am yet to encounter a useful human in there, i think they have about 5 HR advisers, for what - 25k staff? And they aren't exactly helpful. 'User friendly' and 'efficient' are in a foreign language to the IT department, as is 'quick' and 'stable'.

Progression is definitely possible, but it will generally leave a nasty taste in your mouth. Think along the lines of waiting months for a pay increase that is less than what the role should be, or just being denied it, even though you are doing the job. Or getting promoted into a role for significantly less than the person doing it before you, or with no increase at all, and you get to keep your previous role too. Excellent. 

Training is 100% non existent, unless that training will enable Mears to pass blame onto the employee, then it will happen. Maybe. Anything skills based though, you can forget about that (I have been there well over 10 years and have been promoted several times)

If you want to work for a company where your utter frustration in not being able to carry out your job properly is relentless, because your employer is completely unable to provide you with working IT systems etc, never mobilises anything even half properly, and be constantly apologising on their behalf to your team, client and sub contractors while being treated with such disdain its almost unbelievable, then this is the company for you. 

What makes all of this unbearable is the completely made up propaganda they are endlessly bombarding you with, about how they are investors in this, and pro work life balance that etc etc. None of this is even slightly true. I have seen staff feedback being falsified, removed or just completely mis-reported, every single year. There is no point in trying to improve anything, they don't want to know, what they want is yes people, who just say yes, with no thought to how its actually going to happen (bearing in mind the appalling support services you have) And your soul. They want that too. 

If you want to work for a forward thinking company that believes in efficiency, customer service and treating their staff well, then definitely look elsewhere. 

I wouldn't employ Mears to change a light bulb.

working at this company for 7 years has been a real eye opener to how an organisation should not be run.

The company employs under trained managers and supervisors that know they would not be able o get an equivalent job anywhere else.

because of their lack of experience and ability they often start to rely on bullying and intimidation of operatives. A strong blame culture develops due to the need to blame the lower member of staff for problems and inefficiency.   

The staff turn around is very high as those who have the ability want to move on to a decent company/work environment or members and staff at all levels are dismissed as they are used as scapegoats and sacked by the company or their line managers.

Moral is usually low and only lifts if the management are sacked or moved on, this happens very often. During this time (due to the culture at this company), the operatives have a chance to get on with the jobs that they have experience in doing without having to worry about being a scapegoat or the stress of yet another manager or supervisor trying to make themselves look good or even know what there doing.

There is no training and development at this company, at the branch in Welwyn that I worked they had set up a training center in the building with a full time instructor. It was soon became clear that this training center was not made for its most obvious use as over the past few years of it being there it lays largely empty, and even though I repeatedly asked to get on the skill courses I was never allowed. I think it must be some sort of selling point to win new council maintenance contracts, a tax deductible, or to fool the organisation "Investing in people" to think that they are a good organisation.

The hardest part of the job is dealing with the management at all levels who think that the disciplinary procedures are for punitive ( punishment) measures instead of helping the company to retain and help good employees, getting them back to being productive. 

The best part of the job is providing a service for elderly people in the community. They are full of history, great stories and are glad of someone to interact with when we are there. Some are often isolated as have poor mobility and may not have family near by.

The training was 5 days unpaid, however seemed in depth and very thorough. They toothed their horn about how they get the most contracts ect and there is always work and a support line ect. I felt confident going in as a walker at this point.
Then I had a week of shadowing. This was great for hands on experience however I saw the same service users time and time again. This meant I didn't get training on things like catheter care. I did raise this to management at the end of my shadowing and they said they'd sort it out. So at this point I was less confident, but was still determined to keep going. I was aware I'd need to self manage my time sometimes at the walks may take longer than expected. 
I was put on to work alone the next week. The first service user I had was also new to the company, just discharged out of hospital the night before. The care plan was a sheet of paper with a few bullet points on the care I was expected to give. Nothing about this users health or conditions I should be aware of. That was the first red light. Across the next few days I was given 10 min between calls to walk almost a mile to the other side of the town. Next I noticed I had to give drops to a user which I didn't have the qualification to administer. Management just told me to let the user guide my hand and me squeeze the bottle. Of course I refused this and coordinated with the carer I shadowed (who was qualified) to switch calls. 
I made it 3 days before I was too exhausted and fatigued to the extent I didn't feel safe to administer meds. I called in sick, management still asked if I could manage half a day, which I agreed to so I didn't leave the other carers with all my calls. I worked more than 6 hrs before I could go home. I refused to work until I was better, management called me at least 2 times a day to tell me I should be getting back to work and what I am doing to help my illness. I was trying to sleep it off but you know, got interrupted by calls. On my 3rd day of illness they requested a sick note, then questioned the sick note when I gave it to them. 
Management were aware I have anxiety, and my line manager caused an anxiety attack while on the phone. No apology or care, just 'I don't know what your triggers are'.
That was the final straw. I resigned after that. 

Zero hour contracts are the first issue; they don't even attempt to keep your hours to an average number. One week you could have 50 hours, the next week 12 hours (from experience). They don't understand distance, they'll have you going back and forth up to 3 miles between area of calls to do 15 minute visits, which earns you a measly £1.70. If you don't roll over and do this they'll cut your hours and have you in one small area with huge gaps between calls but not enough time to go home, you have to sit around outside waiting because the calls are for the same group of people at different time periods, AM, lunch, tea, PM; you do not get paid for any travelling time between calls or the gaps, you could be out for the day for 12 hours and only be paid for 6 hours work. You have zero social life or family time because your working hours are spread over the entire day. You do get every other weekend off but are often guilted into working it (you scratch their back, they'll scratch yours). Management are never in the office to speak to you if you have concerns - and when you do raise an issue about your hours or the distance you can't physically cover, they'll only listen after several chats and when you break down into tears, but that will only rectify the issue for around 3 months then it'll go back to how it was and you have to do the same again. They constantly take on new staff and give them the more settled staffs hours. The communication between the office and the care workers is horrendous. You can turn up to calls and the service user may have cancelled, gone into hospital, passed away - you won't hear about this till you turn up, then you don't get paid. There is always discrepancies with pay and you NEVER get underpayments back. I could go on and on. If you don't have your own car never do this kind of job, you have to be out the house 12-14 hours a day, 6 days a week, in all weathers to just to say hit the £1000 mark wage a month. Even if you drive you won't get any help towards petrol!

Do not work for this company! 

-Don’t get fooled by the hourly rate.
-You get taken advantage of if you have a car and drive.
-Made to give walkers a lift when you double up.
-No support from any of the staff. 
-Only got 3 days shadowing of 6 hours per shift, when it’s meant to be weeks of shadowing, then was left on my own for a 16 hour shift with no help, no one to contact. Couldn’t find the houses, never knew the condition of the people I was going into and was struggling to keep to the allocated times. 
-Accused of giving a copy of my P45 when it was the original.
-You don’t have a social life or a life in general if you work for mears. It consists of constantly working and no days off.
-Have to work 12 weeks before getting paid for your training which you have to take four days off for.
-Never got sent out a pvg certificate after it was completed.
-Don’t start studying for your SVQ lvl 2 until after working for the company for 2 years, which they don’t tell you. 
-Management are unorganised, have no respect for the staff, only care about themselves
-Made to travel to and from towns for short visits and only given 5 mins to get to another town then you have to travel straight back again.
-Applied for the Melrose position but was made to work in Gala, Tweedbank, Selkirk, Peebles, Innerleithen, Earlston, Lauder, Redpath, Newtown and St Boswell’s. 
-Hassled constantly to work extra shifts even on your days off
-Get told you work either 7-3 or 3-11 but instead ur working the whole day
-Aren’t guaranteed your day off, sometimes you’re working 7 days a week.
-I was refused compassionate leave when my gran died.
-Don’t pay you the allocated fuel money.
-Didn’t sort out my P45, so they’re due me hundreds of tax back.
-My uniform wasn’t new, it was old and covered in animal hair.
-Name badge was late and worn/dirty when I eventually received it.
-They never give you the holidays you ask for.
-Don’t get paid by the hour, you only get paid £2.55 for a 15 min visit, £5 for a half hour visit, £7 for a 45 min visit and £10.20 for an hour visit which are very rare.

Took on care contracts but not enough carers to cover. Planners not always pleasant to carers and if they couldn't beg extra cover from the regulars, they would manipulate new carers with either empty promises of a regular run, emphasising their job description or reminding them that they have to cover X amount of hours for those who were on a minimum hour contract. There was support for the carers but only when they were at breaking point. The long term carers had regular clients and within a good geographical area which they could do 3 or 4 short calls in an hour others would have to cover 3 or 4 miles between clients so only 1 or 2 calls. Carers only get paid for the time they spend with clients.  Mears did have walking carers but sometimes  they would have to walk 20mins between clients if there wasn't the calls to cover in one area. In fairness the planners would try and get a driver and a walker to double up on as many calls as possible. Some drivers were more than happy to do this and others not, so this caused friction all round. There was a big turnover of staff due to not being able cover their costs of living. Some weeks they would get 25 hours paid work ,other weeks 6hours just not enough consistency. Clients were promised various call times and specific carers that was unrealistic and made the planning in some cases almost verging on impossible. Mears were promising things they couldn't adhere to. This in turn caused complaints that could have been avoided if there wasn't a culture of do what the clients wants rather than doing what is attainable from a business point of view. The induction is very in depth and Mears seem to have the correct method for recruiting in as much as the new carers i came across had the empathy and compassion needed to deliver care and were very enthusiastic. Rate of pay is very good in comparison to other care companies if you can get regular hours.

Working for Mears afforded me the opportunity to learn new skills.

Typically my working day was 08.00 - 17.00 or 09.00 - 18.00 with a 1 hour lunch break.  The working day consisted of mostly taking calls from tenants who were calling to report a repair or calling to chase works that were not yet completed; often these were complex issues which required going through audit notes to establish why the issues were still outstanding.  Each day was very different as was the nature of both the tenants and the calls.  Liaising with colleagues, Operatives, Council members, Environmental Health and sometimes local MP's was all part of the day and essential to ensure that repairs were completed in a timely manner.

I learned how to navigate the software and to how to plan, allocate and schedule repairs.  I also learned how to deal with very difficult tenants with tact and respect.

The Management was inconsistent and poor in relation to areas of training and development (basically I learned the job by watching co-workers sometimes very ineptly, as they also had received very little in the way of training) but were mostly friendly and considerate with work colleagues regarding family issues and annual leave.

My co-workers in general were very hardworking and mostly supportive.

The most difficult part of the job arose because of the inconsistency of audit notes applied to the system by colleagues and Management which often led to confusion when dealing with complex issues or complaints.

The most rewarding aspects were being able to help tenants who were often in very difficult, stressful situations and being able to see the works through to completion.  Often tenants and Council members would praise our efforts to resolve issues and this was very satisfying.

I worked for Mears Group PLC, and my experience was highly disappointing. While the company promotes its mission of providing housing and support services, the reality is quite different.

Senior management is inconsistent, with some leaders lacking the experience or skills necessary to guide their teams effectively. 

Decision-making often felt arbitrary, and there was a noticeable disconnect between management and frontline staff. The focus seemed to be solely on how much money the company could make, with little regard for employee wellbeing or the quality of services provided to clients.

A particularly troubling issue was the way staff contracts were handled. Many employees had their contracts terminated without any proper investigation into the circumstances, leaving people feeling unsupported and unfairly treated. This approach created a culture of insecurity and mistrust among the workforce.

It’s also worth noting that no one in receipt of a Mears contract/service seems satisfied with their services. The military, in particular, have been very critical of how ineffective and unhelpful Mears has been in delivering on their commitments.

Workplace issues were frequently ignored, and staff concerns were dismissed, creating a demoralising environment. 

Overall, it felt like employees were just a means to an end rather than valued members of the organisation. Unless significant changes are made to how the company operates and values its staff, I cannot recommend Mears Group PLC.

There should be public scrutiny into how these cowboys conduct business.

Avoid like the plague


I worked doing pop-in calls in the centre of Norwich. I was required to travel to calls with my car and assist clients to stay independent. Make sure they received medication, personal care, companionship.
Many of the calls were 15 minutes long, very rushed, no real care accomplished as you are pressured to move on to next client. Many service users alone for long periods and desperate for companionship.
Management was VERY poor. They would ring daily putting extra calls on me. I could do 20 calls in one evening. They were poorly organised, to the point of missing calls when under stress, so a service user may not even get any care! Disgusting treatment of employees, expecting to drop everything to do things they need. Not client centred care at all, just profit. They left me to do a double up call alone, they harrassed me with phone calls, their coordinators were often rude. Service users were not made regulars, so they would feel unhappy at the number of different faces, and you can't get to know anyone. They didn't get the times they wanted (they once booked me to go into a lady at 7am, when it should be 11am).
To make matters worse, the salary was abysmal. I often felt like I was paying to keep my car on the road. I ended up leaving after I found they didn't like me, as I didn't bend over to their will. The office became hostile towards me. I was not the only one that got this treatment, and it probably is partly why the staff turnover is ridiculously high! 
I actively discourage anyone from going with this company, I thoroughly regret working with them as long as I did.

Top Job Titles	Average salary
Cleaner 3 salaries reported	£32,579 per year
Housing officer 6 salaries reported	£26,615 per year
Welfare officer 10 salaries reported	£24,000 per year
Housing manager 1 salary reported	£32,500 per year
Supported living support worker 7 salaries reported	£12.50 per hour

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