The DfE provides Statutory guidance for Careers Education in schools and it states:
High quality careers education and guidance in school or college is critical to young people’s futures. It helps to prepare them for the workplace by providing a clear understanding of the world of work including the routes to jobs and careers that they might find engaging and rewarding. It supports them to acquire the self-development and career management skills they need to achieve positive employment destinations. This helps students to choose their pathways, improve their life opportunities and contribute to a productive and successful economy.
To help schools develop a careers programme that increases opportunities for students to access everything from experiences of the workplace and personal guidance with a careers adviser, to engagement with employers, colleges, training providers and universities, all Federation schools are working towards achieving The Gatsby Benchmarks.
These are:
- A stable careers programme
- Learning from career and labour market information
- Addressing the needs of each pupil
- Linking curriculum learning to careers
- Encounters with employers and employees
- Experiences of workplaces
- Encounters with further and higher education
- Personal guidance
To support schools with this, the Wokingham Federation works in close partnership with The Careers and Enterprise Company and, as part of this, the Enterprise Adviser Network, with schools benefitting from one-to-one support from local business people.
Part of the Government’s Careers Strategy is to provide additional funding so that more young people can benefit from high quality employer encounters. As part of this strategy, ‘Careers Hubs’ have been created around the country. These hubs build on the support already being offered to schools and colleges across all of the Gatsby Benchmarks. All Federation schools are now members of the Thames Valley Hub and this will help drive forward careers education across all Federation Schools.