History

After an innocent LinkedIn post by Mark Allan went viral was seen by over 6 million users Mark realised you get the lovers and the haters they come as a pair, the one resounding message was “help me I have been made redundant” This message came at a time Marks recruitment business was proving hard work and a project he was working in had been objected to despite seeing positive success. 

Mark felt totally lost, LinkedIn have Mark the answers he so desperately needed at the time. Job Doctors Surgery CIC was incorporated and commissioned by regulator in November 2019 and has been set up to combat issues Mark has personally faced in his life, mental health as he was diagnosed with ADHD and had to learn how to manage his brain quite late in life, redundancy and loneliness which overtook Matk when he started his own business and the effect was huge on motivation and progress. 

All this change and learning in such a short term period Mark was still getting used to his new normal when the first COVID lockdown hit. After making short lived success with his recruitment business he resurrected his dormant CIC he created after LinkedIn spoke to him

Mark single-handedly created and developed the website, created marketing, created business plans, project plans, did everything to ensure the community interest company could trade legally.

Mark in November 2020 created his first happy to chat bench a project aims to combat loneliness and mental health in the community. The bench in memory of Tommy Thwaites, a friend who committed suicide after a homophobic attack in a Maidstone nightclub.

The chat bench was very well received by the public. The Kent messenger local newspaper followed the story, along with ITV news. It confirmed what Mark already new just as he had thought when he first saw the bench idea in Spain it was never more needed and was without doubt something he was going to develop in 2021. 

Mark hopes to work with local companies and organisations that have the same community values to work in unison to create further ‘connect benches’ as a way of communicating with the most vulnerable of the community in a different way.

Job Doctors Surgery will also create projects to combat the serious issues they work to repair through employment training and interview coaching.

Last December 2020 Mark Allan was nominated, became a finalist and was then commended for his tenacity, resilience whilst what was a painful journey of realisation. He was commended for showing the ability to come out the other side against the odds at London’s prestigious Southwark Business Excellence Awards for Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Connect benches and interview coaching programme will be the main focus of the first part of the year.