Rationale

“An education that builds literacy and numeracy but omits essential skills leaves 18% of the population with an above-average education level and yet a very low essential skill score. This group has the worst job satisfaction, life satisfaction, and sense of their life being worthwhile. They also earn much less than their peers.” CDI – Career Development Institute.

At Claypole CE Primary School, our curriculum is designed so that our children learn more and see more so that they can be more. We believe that careers education allows our children to widen their horizons, challenge stereotypes and take their first steps to unlocking their potential. Through an embedded careers curriculum, children learn a variety of key skills, develop work ethic and encourage resilience. They learn about the world of work, and the things which may be expected of them as they grow into adults and they develop their understanding of a range of different pathways and careers available to them.

The CDI Career Development Framework, alongside the Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) formulates the careers curriculum which we offer to children at Claypole CE Primary School as part of our “beyond statutory” Curriculum.

The objectives outlined in the CDI Framework cover 6 main areas:

1. Grow throughout life

2. Explore possibilities

3. Manage career

4. Create opportunities

5. Balance life and work

6. See the big picture

What does this look like in our school?

• Making meaningful links to the world of work within curriculum lessons
• Providing children with opportunities to learn from real world contexts, interact with employers and experience workplaces
• Enabling children to make links between what they are learning in the classroom and the practical application of that knowledge (and skills)
• Ensuring that children begin to understand the skills required in the workplace and have opportunities to develop these
• Helping children understand the opportunities available to them in the local and regional labour market, and variety of pathways into these roles, including through further and higher education.

Children’s entitlement

All children are entitled to be fully involved in an effective CEIAG programme.

At Claypole CE Primary School, all year groups will cover careers objectives through [PSHE] Personal, Social, Health Education as well as through bespoke enquiry questions that are woven in to our curriculum. All classes will be given opportunities to discuss various careers with a wide range of visitors, to broaden horizons and allow children to develop their understanding of different careers which are available to them. Children are encouraged to take an active role in their own career development, so the careers programme emphasises student participation with a focus on self-development; learning about careers and the world of work; and developing career management and employability skills.

The Gatsby Enterprise Benchmarks & Framework (explained)

1. A stable careers programme (GB1)  - Every school and college should have an embedded programme of career education and guidance
2.  Learning from career and labour market information (GB2) - Every pupil, and their parents, should have access to good-quality information about future study options and labour market opportunities.
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil (GB3)  - Pupils have different career guidance needs at different stages. Opportunities for advice and support need to be tailored to the needs of each pupil. A school’s careers programme should embed equality and diversity considerations throughout.
4.  Linking curriculum learning to careers (GB4) - All teachers should link curriculum learning with careers. For example, STEM subject teachers should highlight the relevance of STEM subjects for a wide range of future career paths.
5. Encounters with employers and employees (GB5)  - Every pupil should have multiple opportunities to learn from employers about work, employment and the skills that are valued in the workplace. This can be through a range of enrichment activities including visiting speakers, mentoring and enterprise schemes.
6. Experiences of workplaces (GB6)  - Every pupil should have first-hand experiences* of the workplace through work visits, work shadowing and/or work experience to help their exploration of career opportunities and expand their networks.
7. Encounters with further and higher education (GB7) - All pupils should understand the full range of learning opportunities that are available to them. This includes both academic and vocational routes and learning in schools, colleges, universities and in the workplace.
8. Personal guidance (GB8) - Every pupil should have opportunities for guidance interviews with a career’s adviser, who could be internal (a member of school staff) or external, provided they are trained to an appropriate level.

Careers at Claypole CE Primary School - What do the Gatsby Benchmarks look like here?

1. A stable careers programme (GB1) - At Claypole CE Primary School this is set out in our PSHE/RSE curriculum and in our enrichment curriculum which shows how we enhance our Claypole CE Curriculum and raise aspirations through careers activities, visits, visitors and other experiences. This information is available on our website.
2. Learning from career and labour market information (GB2) - At Claypole CE Primary School this is set out in our PSHE/RSE curriculum and additional information is available on our school website (see career and labour market information links).
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil (GB3)  - At Claypole CE Primary School the curriculum is designed appropriately and reflects the equality and diversity of our school population and wider community population. Children are given opportunities to apply for, and undertake ambassadorial roles within school, for example: Pupil Parliament (aka Changemakers), Young Ambassadors, Playground Leaders, ‘Spirit of Service’ and ‘class responsibilities.’
4. Linking curriculum learning to careers (GB4) - At Claypole CE Primary School our curriculum overview includes careers links. Display boards around the school have careers linked to each particular subject.
5. Encounters with employers and employees (GB5)  - Across the year, we invite employers and employees to hold assemblies in school to discuss their chosen careers (i.e. Science Week invited adults with jobs related to science). We also actively look for additional encounters with employers and employees for our children across the year.
6. Experiences of workplaces (GB6)  - through visits, visitors and other experiences.
7. Encounters with further and higher education (GB7) - At Claypole CE Primary School we have visits to feeder secondary schools and visitors from these also visit the children within our school setting. We also have strong links with a number of local universities and our children visit these or visitors from the universities come into school.
8. Personal guidance (GB8) - Our children are able to ask questions about all of the different careers and particularly those that are of interest to them.

During their time here, children will also:

● have access up-to-date and unbiased information on future learning and training, careers and labour market information;

● receive support to develop the self-awareness and career management skills needed for their future;

● learn about the world of work, the job market and the skills needed for the future through other curriculum topics and applying for leadership roles within school;

● experience meaningful encounters with representatives from the world of work; this could be through curriculum study, R-Time, assemblies, careers talks (in or outside lessons), projects and education visits;

● hear from a range of education and training providers; this could include visits and taster days, as well as assemblies, talks and meetings at school;

● have the opportunity to relate what they learn in lessons to their life beyond school;

● have the opportunity to talk through their career and educational choices with staff and their peers.

Employer links

Links with employers, businesses and other external agencies continue to grow by developing links with local secondary, college and university; by building on local community connections; as well as through the support of the Local Authority Career Advisors.

Monitoring and evaluation

When monitoring the success of our approach, the school considers formal and informal measures, qualitative and quantitative data and hard and soft outcomes for students. This will be evaluated in a number of ways, including:

⮚ student feedback on their experience of the careers programme and what they gained from it

⮚ staff feedback on curriculum development

⮚ gathering informal feedback from external partners and from parents

Links to useful careers websites 

What is Labour Market Information (LMI) and why is it important?

Labour Market Information (LMI) tells you about the jobs that are available in the area that you live in. It's useful to help you learn about future jobs in the local area, understand the skills you need for certain roles and the demand for future employment.

Careerometer can be used to explore and compare key information about occupations, help you learn about different occupations and identify potential careers.

It provides information about pay, weekly hours of work and future employment prospects for different occupations, as well as description of the occupation.

Simply type in the title of the job you are interested in and the widget provides a series of options from which you can select the most relevant to you. You can then look up another two occupations and compare. You can also select ‘display the UK average’ and compare the information with the occupation you have selected.

www.lmiforall.org.uk/careerometer/