I arrived at the interview 10 minutes earlier for a Mental Health Support Worker role on the Ealing Personality Disorder ward. As I walked in, I saw 2 other candidates waiting patiently in the reception area; we had been told beforehand it would be a group interview followed by individual ones, depending on the group performance. 15 minutes past the starting time, one of the managers came to inform us that they will no longer hold a group interview, and everyone will be interviewed individually based on their arrival order. After a 1.5 hour wait, I was invited in by one of the managers. I was invited to take a seat at a big, squared table; one my right there were 2 ward managers and on my left a very shy girl who was referred to as the 'boss for today' (I later found out she was a service user); whilst I was asked to sit at the head of the table. A few minutes into the interview, they informed me they had the wrong questions for my interview, and I had to wait another 30 minutes for one of the ward managers to come back with the correct questions. In the meantime, no one started any conversation with me and when I asked them if they do activities with the service users in the garden, the service user sat there was about to cry. The whole vibe during the interview was strange and awkward; they were speaking so quietly I could barely hear them, were looking down at all times and they hardly made eye contact with me or with each other and they all seemed very insecure (especially the lead ward manager who was wearing a poorly ironed suit). When I left the premises, I ran into a service user who was crying their eyes out. A day later I found out I did not get the job and honestly, I do not regret it. If they can't respect an applicant's time, I don't expect they respect their employees' time very much either so I'd rather not be one. My friend who worked at Cygnet Harrow told me about the abuses that go unchallenged in the wards, daily assaults of staff members, poor pay, incompetent staff members and management, and a very toxic culture.

It was a smooth experience. They didnt waste time before calling me in for the interview. And the staff that interviewed me was quite polite as well. Overall. It was a great one