Careers

All students will:

Take part in a careers programme in years 7-11 that helps them to:

• Understand their education, training, employment and other progression opportunities,
• Develop the skills they need to plan and manage their own personal development and career progression,
• Access relevant information and learning from taster activities and experience of work (in year 8 during administration support, and in year 10 with an employer),
• Provide feedback and ideas on how to improve the careers programme,
• Have access to, and support with using careers information that is both timely and easily accessible, including information from other providers, the internet, and career advisors,
• All curriculum areas will also include careers within their subject areas. This will be within lesson content and displays within their area showing potential pathways and some of the careers that the subject could lead in to.

Obtain careers guidance that is:

• Impartial,
• Confidential,
• Focused on their individual needs and is fit for purpose,
• Supportive of equal opportunities,
• Provided by people with relevant training and expertise,
• Students are able to arrange a personal interview with our Connexions Advisors, Tanuja Patel and Kukki Dhesi, who are based in Arena Academy twice weekly.

All parents and carers can expect to:

• Receive CEIAG information via Arena newsletters and hand-outs at parents’ evenings.
• Access information re CEIAG on the school website.
• Be able to email the our Connexions Advisors with regard to any career related questions.
• Be able to speak to our Connexions Advisors at years 8-11 parent evenings.

Students in Years 8-11 are entitled:

• To find out about technical education qualifications and apprenticeships opportunities, as part of a careers programme which provides information on the full range of education and training options available at each transition point,
• To hear from a range of local providers about the opportunities they offer, including technical education and apprenticeships – through options evenings, assemblies and group discussions, parents evenings and taster events,
• To understand how to make applications for the full range of academic and technical courses.

Exploring Opportunities / Broadening Horizons – By the end of Year 7 students will:

• Develop awareness of the world of work, including a breadth of positions and methods of working,
• Be able to identify the key skills for employment,
• Undertaken personal self–evaluation, including: – Future ambitions and necessary steps,
• Understand the importance of developing positive employability skills.

Building the Future – By the end of Year 8 students will:

• Have opportunities to explore post 14 options & their implications for post 16, post 18 and future aspirations,
• Have developed awareness of careers linked to curriculum subjects (through content and skills),
• Have opportunities to investigate local Labour Market Information (LMI),
• Have had opportunities to engage with a range of employers and providers to experience meaningful encounters.

Opening Doors – By the end of Year 9 students will:

• Understand the value of understanding their own skills and qualities and be able to link these to potential post 16 / post 18 pathways,
• Develop an awareness of self, including the importance of a professional social media profile and employability skills, including attendance and punctuality,
• Have an understanding of the pathways available to them and how these lead to the ‘next steps’,
• Have had opportunities to engage with a range of employers and providers, including FE and HE establishments, to experience meaningful encounters,
• Begin to understand organisational structures,
• Begin to have an understanding of what makes an entrepreneur and develop an awareness of the challenges and benefits of starting your own business.

Step Up, Stand Out – by the end of Year 10 students will:

• Have encountered first-hand experience of researching, applying for and engaging with an organisation for work experience,
• Have had the experience of exposure to key employability skills in the context of an actual working environment,
• Have had opportunities to recognise the skills and qualities that are needed in a variety of jobs, including entrepreneurs,
• Have the opportunity to articulate ‘employment self’ through their personal statement,
• Have had opportunities to engage with a range of employers and providers, including FE and HE establishments, to experience meaningful encounters,
• Have had opportunities to visit FE and HE providers,
• Have had optional access to impartial information, advice and guidance from the school’s careers advisor.

Post 16 and Beyond – Be Prepared – By the end of Year 11 students will:

• Have completed a fully functional CV and personal statement that focuses on their skills and qualities,
• Have had opportunities to engage with a range of employers and providers, including FE and HE establishments, to experience meaningful encounters,
• Have attended a session with the careers adviser and produced an action plan in order to help them make decisions about post-16 options,
• Have an appropriate career plan for post 16 with a view to post 18 and beyond pathways,
• Have made applications to more than 1 appropriate post 16 providers.

Arena Academy’s Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) programme is reviewed by the Headteacher and the Personal Development Lead. Reports are submitted to the senior leadership team and governors. The overall effectiveness of the CEIAG programme is assessed using the Career and Enterprise Compass tool and the Gatsby Benchmarks, paying due regard to the Statutory Guidance 2018, ‘Careers guidance and access for education and training providers’. The results are used to inform improvement priorities and plan developments year-on-year.

We seek feedback from learners and staff about the relevance of the CEIAG programme and Information, Advice and Guidance (IAG) provided and the materials used. This evaluation is reviewed by the Personal Development Lead, and is used to resource relevant gaps in the provision. The methods we will use to gain feedback are:

• • Feedback from parents/carers including telephone calls and evaluations

• • Student Voice meetings

• • Online surveys

• • Student World of Work Council feedback

• • Impact measures

• • Using destination measures data to help us to measure our success in supporting learners to take up higher education, vocational learning or apprenticeships and to allow for the review of the possible reasons for any student becoming Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET)

We ensure that all young people at Arena Academy have opportunities to develop the following employability attributes:

• Invest in themselves, recognise their own strengths and values and take responsibility for developing their work readiness, skills and behaviours (Self-motivated)
• Have the tools and skills required to present themselves to a future employer (Self-assured)
• Have high aspirations for themselves (Aspirational)
• Understand the opportunities available to them locally and beyond, and to make realistic choices (Informed)
• Have experiences of work that are rewarding and fulfilling (Experienced)
• Achieve qualifications valued by employers (Achieving)
• Understand that employers want people who will work hard and are accountable for their actions (Accountable)
• Understand that employers want young people who can listen and learn from their successes and their mistakes and keep going (Resilient)
• Work creatively to achieve their potential and that of the business (Entrepreneurial)
• Have effective communication and co-working skills (Co-operative)

The fast-changing world of work puts an ever-greater demand on all of us to support young people in making a successful transition from education to employment, helping them to identify and choose career opportunities that are right for them.

The Government’s Careers Strategy and statutory guidance for school leaders and school staff sets out the plan for building a high-quality careers system that will help young people to achieve. At the heart of our career strategy, the eight Gatsby Benchmarks have been developed and define all the elements of an excellent careers programme.