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Careers Guidance

Our close involvement with the world of industry and our dedicated Post 16 careers advisor enables us to support every student to achieve their potential, ensuring that upon leaving us, they are well prepared for the challenges of employment.

In Y12, students will take part in Barclays Life Skills sessions which is a nationally recognised programme created in response to identified skills gaps. The sessions are led by expert facilitators and involve preparation activities for the world of work such as interview role-play, CV writing and personality profiling. In addition, students will benefit from an extensive range of external speakers in order to expand their knowledge of available opportunities beyond Sixth Form. The year concludes with an opportunity to complete work experience placements at international companies 

In Y13, we continue to help students navigate their Post 18 options by offering support in the completion of the personal statements required for University applications, Higher Level Apprenticeships or employment. This process is supported by extensive use of our Unifrog software which allows students to reflect on their personal competencies and research the individual entrance requirements for all educational courses, both in the UK and overseas. We are rightly proud of the level of support we offer and have an outstanding record that indicates all of our students leave to positive destinations.

Careers Team

  • SLT Careers Link:            Mrs Paddock
  • MAC Careers Lead:        Miss C Klatt
  • Careers Leader:              Mrs J Holmes

Careers Strategy

The overall aim of the school’s Careers Strategy is to ensure that CEIAG offers students quality opportunities to prepare for their next steps and transition in to positive destinations and long term healthy career success.  We will:

  • Support students to develop a knowledge and understanding of themselves as individuals, their strengths, weaknesses, abilities, personal qualities, needs, skills, attributes and potential.
  • Strengthen strategic partnerships with parents, employers, further education, higher education, apprenticeship, technical education and training providers.
  • Ensure Gatsby Benchmarks of Good Career Guidance are fully embedded in our CEIAG programme across the curriculum.
  • Continuously review the impact of CEIAG programme through the Careers and Enterprise Company’s Compass tracking tool

Accordion content

Gatsby Benchmark

The eight Gatsby Benchmarks of Good Careers Guidance:

  1. A stable careers programme.
  2. Learning from career and labour market information.
  3. Addressing the needs of each pupil.
  4. Linking curriculum learning to careers.
  5. Encounters with employers and employees.
  6. Experiences of workplaces.
  7. Encounters with further and higher education.
  8. Personal guidance.

The eight Gatsby Benchmarks above are a framework for good career guidance developed to support schools in providing students with the best possible careers education, information, advice and guidance. If you would like further information on the benchmarks, please go to https://www.gatsby.org.uk/ or https://www.goodcareerguidance.org.uk.

The above benchmarks are met by delivering a range of activities from one-to-one career guidance interviews, work experience, mock interviews, employability skills events, visits to local universities and visiting speakers through the PSHE&C curriculum.

Provider Access

As part of our commitment to support students to make informed choices about the wide variety of learning and training pathways on offer.  We are happy to consider requests from providers to speak with our students about the range of opportunities they offer, including technical education and apprenticeships. Baker Clause Policy Statement

All requests will be considered on the basis of staffing availability to support the activity, clashes with other planned activity, interruption to preparation for examinations or rooming and space availability to host the activity.

Information and Work Experience

Careers Information Advice and Guidance (One-to-One)

Our independent Careers Adviser, Mr Robinson, offers one-to-one professional and impartial careers guidance for students who are thinking about their next steps ie. Options choices, post-16 and post-18 pathways.  Mr Robinson is located in the Careers Hub within the Library.

Work Experience and Employability

We run very successful Work Experience and Employability programmes in school. Our students are prepared from Year 7 onwards for the future and assisting with the period of transition from school to adult working life.

We use various opportunities to engage with local and national employers as they progress through the school which will to enable them to:

  • Understand more about the adult working world
  • Develop the key skills, appropriate attitudes and personal qualities which together make for work readiness
  • Increase their knowledge of particular jobs or careers
  • Expand their awareness of their skills and talents
  • See the relevance of work that is done in school
  • Gain confidence and responsibility for themselves and others

It is our school policy in Year 10 that students undertake a week of Work Experience with a local or national employer.  This should take into account a student’s area of vocational interest wherever possible.

Kudos

All students have access to Kudos https://kudos.cascaid.co.uk an online careers software package which can be accessed via the internet at school and from home.  Students and parents/carers are able to explore career routes that include further education, higher education and apprenticeships depending on where they are in their education and on personal preference.  Sessions on Kudos are delivered through the PSHE&C curriculum during the academic year.

Post-16 Pathways and Labour Market Information

When it comes to the question of what students can do following GCSEs, there are a lot of options to consider. Therefore, the Department for Education has put together a couple of simple and handy guides to inform young people and their parents/carers about the options available to them.

These include:

  • A route comparison grid – which shows all of the routes available after GCSEs, along with additional information on each one, such as the level of study, entry requirements, duration of the course, and where it can lead. http://www.trinity-school.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/16pluscolour-grid-2.pdf
  • A 2-minute animation – showcasing and explaining each choice in a simple, dynamic and visual manner https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f_xAQNNi4pA&feature=youtu.be

Labour Market Information (LMI)

Every student and their parent should have access to good quality information about future study options and labour market opportunities.  We encourage parents to access and use the most recent information from The National Careers Service https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk provides free impartial careers advice and guidance to anyone over the age of 13, including further education choices, in line with the Gatsby Benchmarks of Good Careers Guidance.

Local Labour Market Information (LMI) for Coventry and Warwickshire – April to June 2020 (including furloughed workers) http://www.trinity-school.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/Coventry-Warwickshire-LMI.pdf is distributed by the National Careers Service. This information can be used by parents/carers to support young people to make informed choices about future study options, changing labour market opportunities, raising aspirations and promoting social mobility.

Another useful website which is government funded “LMI for All” https://www.lmiforall.org.uk an online data portal, which connects and standardises existing sources of high quality, reliable labour market information (LMI) with the aim of informing careers decisions.

Further Education and Higher Education

Further Education (College)

Further Education (or FE for short) is education which takes place after secondary education. Courses are usually more vocational and can be studied at levels 1 to 3.  Colleges also offer a range of BTEC qualifications which are the equivalent to 3 A levels. They can also lead to university and higher apprenticeships.  Some useful websites for more information are:

https://www.wcg.ac.uk

http://www.stratford.ac.uk

https://www.coventrycollege.ac.uk

https://www.solihull.ac.uk (Technical Education course)

Higher Education

Higher Education (or HE for short) is a continuation of study post the age of 18.  Students might start thinking about whether or not they want to go to university as early as the beginning of secondary school.  Our students are given advice and guidance on university as post-18 pathway during Years 11/12/13.  Some useful websites for more information are:

https://www.ucas.com/what-are-my-options

https://university.which.co.uk/courses

https://university.which.co.uk/courses

https://www.thecompleteuniversityguide.co.uk

https://unistats.ac.uk/ (useful to compare and contrast courses)

https://www.ucas.com/ucas/undergraduate/undergraduate-student-finance-and-support

 

Apprenticeships

Apprenticeships offer employment with education and training.  These are available at Intermediate (equivalent to GCSE level) Advanced (equivalent to A-levels), Higher (foundation degree level) and Degree level.  The employer of an apprentice ensures that they are given the necessary education and training from the employer to become competent in the chosen occupation.  Some useful websites for more information are:

Amazing Apprenticeships: https://amazingapprenticeships.com;

https://amazingapprenticeships.com/app/uploads/2020/06/Parent-Pack-June-2020.pdf

National Careers Service:  https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk

UCAS: https://www.ucas.com/alternatives-to-university

Fire It Up Apprenticeships: https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/apprentice

National Apprenticeship Service: https://www.gov.uk/topic/further-education-skills/apprenticeships

Careers and Enterprise Company

The Careers and Enterprise Company

The school also completes self-assessments of its Careers Programme, once per half term, through the Careers and Enterprise Company’s Compass Tool and Tracker system. This gives us a chance to reflect on the work we have done and again make improvements where necessary.  The Compass Tool helps us to measure our progress against the eight Gatsby Benchmarks – the governments adopted guidelines for good careers guidance.

For more information about the Gatsby Benchmarks, please refer to the Careers and Enterprise Company’s website https://www.careersandenterprise.co.uk navigate to the Gatsby Benchmarks section.

Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP)

Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP)

Our school is part of the Coventry and Warwickshire Local Enterprise Partnership (CWLEP) network.  The Coventry and Warwickshire Careers Hub provides every school and college in the area the opportunity to work together with universities, training providers, employers and careers professionals to improve careers support for young people in our area.  As part of this network, we benefit from the support of a local Enterprise Co-ordinator, matched with a local Enterprise Adviser and access to a community of employer and careers activity programme.

Careers Websites

Careers Websites:

  • BBC Bitesize: Information on deciding what to study, planning a career or explanation of the world of work. https://www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/careers
  • Careers Box: Careers Films on the web https://www.careersbox.co.uk
  • Milkround: Graduate Jobs, Scheme and Internships https://www.milkround.com
  • Success at School: Success at School is the place for young people to explore careers, get the lowdown on top employers, and search for the latest jobs, courses and advice. https://successatschool.org
  • ICould: A website which is open to everyone which uses the power of personal stories to inform and inspire young people’s career choices  https://icould.com
  •  For all STEM careers: http://www.futuremorph.org

If you would like any further information, please do not hesitate to contact the above members of staff.

 

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