Life Science UK "Mature Apprentice"

Hi All,

My daughter just received an offer of employment from a "company" calling themselves Life Science UK and I would be shocked if this is real. I checked the site and it seems its only been registered for a few days so this might be a new one (http://lifescienceuk.com/apprenticeships.html). There is no company address, no phone number and little substance on the site other than multiple ways of squeezing money from vulnerable "kids".

The offer includes a starting salary of £24,500 and is therefore very tempting to a new graduate like my daughter. All she needs to do is part with £69.95 for a "CRB" check and pass over all her personal data to be given further details of the contract etc.

Although many of us could probably guess this is a scam it might be more difficult to spot if you had been applying for hundreds of jobs and not been noting where and who you are expecting a response from. Lets not forget that lots of kids are desperate and eager to "get on the ladder".

As a parent I am absolutely gutted for my daughter after she was so excited to receive this offer. Its a cruel scam and I am sure one which will catch quite a few kids in the next few months.

Could you post the email your daughter got? It would help us kill the site. Also what's a CRB check? I'm American, so if it's something UK-specific, I wouldn't know.

[AlanJones]

^^^A CRB check is a Criminal Record check in the UK. Used for some jobs to check that a prospective employee doesn't have a criminal record.

I got en email offering me very attractive job position, exactly the same as Diuker described today.
Signed by Becky Human Resources. They definitely the scammers. I agree it is cruelty. People who are looking for work are desperate like me. I paid for CRB/DBS check on line via their website and after I check out the website- few days activity; ask them for registered address and more details. I didn't get any. Some "funny" not real information. LIVE SCIENCE UK IT IS NOT LIFE SCIENCES UK!!!
Last email I've got is:

Hi

Our registered address is shown on our web site:

Life Science UK, Registered Office: St John House, St John Street, London, EC1V 4PW ( U.K.)
Human Resources
[email protected]
http://www.lifescienceuk.com

THERE IS NOTHING ON WEBSITE! DON'T LET THEM SCAM YOU AS THEY DID WITH ME.

Could you post the email your daughter got? It would help us kill the site. Also what's a CRB check? I'm American, so if it's something UK-specific, I wouldn't know.

I am not Diuker's daughter but I got the same e-mail.
I HAVE GOT EN EMAIL AS BELOW:

Dear ....
Further to your recent application under the mature apprenticeship scheme, we are delighted to offer you one of the positions of trainee animal health assistant with our new London veterinary Science team, opening in London in May.

Our mature apprentice programme allows you the opportunity to learn new career skills whilst working and earning a competitive salary from the very first day. Mature apprentices enjoy all the great benefits of working for the Life Science UK team, and the knowledge they are contributing to a first class provision of state of the art care.

After consideration of your CV and application a position is yours, subject to you confirming your acceptance and a satisfactory CRB check.

In summary the terms of employment are:

Starting Salary: £24,500 per annum
Start Date: TBA but from April 2014.
Holiday: 4 weeks paid
Sick Leave: 2 weeks ( certified )
Hours: 40 hours per week / flexi time
Permanent contract after 3 month probationary period.
Full training provided.
CRB required.

You will be working as part of a small team within a busy veterinary care support environment, based in central London W1. The hours are flexible around a core of Monday to Friday, 9am to 5pm. Full training will be provided.

Since the position will involve access to sensitive data within the terms of the data protection act, you will however be required to consent to the provision of a new CRB/DBS ( criminal record check ) prior to commencing employment. Since this may take between 3 to 4 weeks to process, it is essential if you wish to accept the position that this is ordered through our provider as soon as possible.

This service is provided independently under licence by Universal Start, and under UK legislation requires in the first instance consent and payment by the applicant. The fee is however refundable once you commence employment with ourselves.

To confirm your acceptance of the job, and arrange your CRB please reply at your earliest convenience. Please note for your security we are only able to accept offer acceptance by email. Should we not hear from you within 3 working days the position may be offered to an alternative candidate.

On receipt of your acceptance we will then contact you with details of how to book your CRB and to arrange your staff induction and start date.

We look forward to working with you.

Kind regards
Becky

Human Resources
[email protected]
http://www.lifescienceuk.com

Thanks for the email! The site has been reported for fraud.

Hello
unfortunately before i saw this forum i already sent the payment using paypal.
To some who are scammed you can still file a dispute report on paypal and get a refund.
It's not too late to get our money back ^^

[AlanJones]

The website has now been disabled by its host after being reported as fraudulent.

I have had the same email today and another one exactly the same but from medivet.
Neither of these companies are registered in the uk and the lifescienceuk.com website has shut down.
I applied for one of these jobs through the job centre search engine and the other through indeed.com
I would of liked to think that these two agencies, one government controlled, would make better checks on companies advertising with them
This is complete oversight on their part and shocking that these people have now got all my work history details, email, address etc as it was all on my cv.
NOT HAPPY AT ALL!!!!