RISE residential – Four days. Dozens of activities. Endless memories.
5 May 2026
By Nicola Lennox, Senior Supply Chain Manager
The second RISE (Ready, Inspired, Skilled & Employed) residential, wasn’t just a break from routine - it was a mix of challenges, confidence building, teamwork and fun. Taking place at the end of March, we’ve only just caught our breath after a whirlwind of applications, interviews and jobs that our participants have been undertaking.
Day one: rain, ropes and rising spirits
Day one began with 53 participants from Manchester and 13 participants from London, all gathering under what can only be described as peak British weather – wet and windy! But spirits undaunted, we set off for Staffordshire to begin our RISE expedition.
BMXs, axes and an unfortunate bush
After arriving, Team one dove straight into BMXing and axe throwing. The BMX track echoed with excitement, panic and pure adrenaline — none louder than one staff member, who screamed her way round the course before heroically landing in a bush.
A flawless dismount? No.
A core memory? Absolutely.
Arrows, confidence and questionable accuracy
Team two kicked off with archery, where calm focus proved difficult under pressure. One confident declaration of ‘I’ve got this’ was followed by an arrow taking a dramatic detour, missing the target but nearly winning most cinematic release of the day.
BMXing followed, where many learned that pedalling is optional — screaming is not.
High ropes, high drama
Teams three and four took on the high ropes crate challenge, stacking crates sky high while battling gravity, nerves and wobbling legs.
Highest score: 10 crates
Victory: Claimed by London, with Manchester disputing its validity. The outcome of the investigation is still pending.
The free fall with the fan, finished the afternoon - big leaps, bigger bravery and everyone making it safely back to solid ground.
Dinner and debates
After the afternoon’s activities, the teams all trouped back to the centre, ready for dinner. Options included nuggets, burgers or jacket potatoes – perfect fuel for the evening’s activities of employability workshops, delivered by Ingeus team members, followed by bouldering, caving or a pub quiz.
Day two: door knocks visitors and confidence unlocked
Day two began exactly how every young adult dreams - persistent door knocking at 8am. Sleepy participants emerged, fuelled up on bacon, eggs, beans and hash browns, and suddenly suspicious levels of energy as the sun made a rare appearance.
Day two saw two of the team from our Central West London offices join us, to experience what a difference a RISE residential has on our participants.
Money, interviews and a mild energy drink panic
Teams one and two kicked off with a finance and budgeting workshop delivered by Rebecca from
Money Ready. The session covered tax, spending and budgeting, and included moments of realisation about how much money gets donated to energy drink companies each month.
Employability sessions followed, focusing on
interview prep and how to answer questions using the
STAR technique. We watched as participant confidence grew, their answers improved and they understood how strong preparation and interview technique can make all the difference.
Rock walls and rifles
Meanwhile, teams three and four were busy rock climbing and air rifle shooting. Targets were hit. Walls were climbed. And fears overcome.
That evening’s reflections were powerful enough that one participant applied for his dream job on the spot. Proving that sometimes, all you need is someone to believe in you to help you believe in yourself.
The evening activities consisted of bouldering, a campfire or bingo. Bingo descended into the expected chaos - except for a standout moment when one participant, keen to build their confidence, volunteered as bingo caller for the final game. The encouragement from everyone, supporting them and cheering them on, made it genuinely emotional.
Day three: big dreams, flying axes and a secret party
Day three started with sleepy participants hunting coffee like it was an Olympic sport.
Dream big
Today we were joined by Employment CEO, Julie Graham, who came to experience the impact of a RISE residential.
With caffeine onboard, teams one and two worked on career goals and action planning with
Participation People. In a truly uplifting session, there were some genuinely powerful moments of reflection and ambition from participants who had really thought that employment was beyond their reach.
Speak up… then throw an axe
Teams three and four took on public speaking with Claudette from
Speakers Trust, learning how to become confident communicators in a world where communicating from behind a screen can make it harder to be heard.
The afternoon featured on camera interviews with our returning film crew - nerves, laughter and the chance to put some learnings into practice.
Pizza and karaoke
Dinner was followed by what participants thought would be a calm evening… until the secret party began. Pizza, karaoke, dancing, press up challenges and more – ending the final evening with the same amount of energy that the first started with.
Day four: courage, certificates and finishing strong
Day four dawned and suitcases were zipped, beds stripped, and a few brave souls tried returning to bed after breakfast, their plans quickly thwarted.
Facing fears
Teams one and two tackled high ropes - with fears faced and countless ‘I didn’t think I could do that’ moments.
Teams three and four hit BMXing, archery and axe throwing. A highlight: four participants who had never ridden a bike before, finished the week confidently riding full laps of the BMX track. Their transformation from never pedalling to full confidence was incredible to witness.
The final reflections and presentations were emotional, honest and powerful. Every participant received a certificate, and each team selected their ‘Participant of the Week’.
Productivity on wheels
After lunch, we began the journey home, but RISE didn’t stop. The Greater Manchester bus became a mobile application hub, with six live applications completed on the journey. Add that to the 20 applications completed during the week, and the momentum is already in full swing.
RISE finished flying
As the teams return to London and Manchester, the focus now shifts to turning confidence into outcomes. The growth witnessed over these four days deserves to carry straight into next steps.
We’re working with participants that attended. Reminding them of what they’ve achieved, celebrating their courage and helping them transform their new skills into jobs.
We’ve already seen success with the first of our participants landing their dream role, watch this space for news.
RISE didn’t just finish strong. It finished flying.
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