Careers, Education, Information, Advice and Guidance

At Chiltern Academy, we are committed to providing pupils with high quality Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) so that they have the skills, knowledge and resource to achieve their potential and make informed decisions about their future.

Our extensive careers programme outlines the range of activities that are available for each year group. Careers education is embedded into the curriculum and pupils have access to accurate and up-to-date labour market information. Pupils will develop their understanding of the diverse and changing world of work through encounters with employers and careers learning, and will be able to explain the range of pathways (including academic, vocational and apprenticeships) available through further and higher education literature and events. Our careers provision is aligned to the eight Gatsby Benchmarks, a framework of good careers guidance that are at the heart of the Government’s Careers Strategy.

Our careers leader is responsible for the implementation of the careers programme and supports pupils throughout their Chiltern careers learning journey. Please take a look at our CEIAG hub which has been designed for pupils, parents and staff, to complement our careers offer. There are a host of useful careers related resources and information.

CEIAG Hub - Click here to enter

A breakdown of the CEIAG offer is outlined below:

Year 7	Introduction to the world of work, meeting with employers during Chiltern Academy’s Careers Fair Coding workshop with Cisco Opportunity to visit places of work through curriculum and extra-curricular led trips Introduction to Morrisby Careers, an online careers research tool Form time activities to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week Explicit links to careers in the curriculum during National Careers Week
Year 8	Participation in University of Bedfordshire’s Aim Higher Days Pupil receptionist for the day Employer engagement opportunity during Chiltern Academy’s Careers Fair Skills Academy with University of Bedfordshire Opportunity to visit places of work through curriculum and extra-curricular led trips Exploring aspirations through Morrisby Careers questionnaire Form time activities to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week Explicit links to careers in the curriculum during National Careers Week
Year 9	Options Assembly Key stage 4 options evening STEM day The Brilliant Club Scholars Programme for our more and most able pupils Creative Arts speed networking event in partnership with The Luton Culture Trust Insight into STEM careers through STEPs into STEM programme with STEMPOINT East KS3 Conference Days with the University of Bedfordshire Decision making lesson using Morrisby Careers Opportunity to visit places of work through curriculum and extra-curricular led trips Form time activities to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week Explicit links to careers in the curriculum during National Careers Week
Year 10	Weekly careers focus form time Business Education Skills Partnership (BESP) event involving speed networking with a number of employers Careers Academy with Job Centre Plus for pupils studying ASDAN Engineering workshop led by British Airways ASK apprenticeships awareness assembly ASK apprenticeships FAA registration workshop Further education taster sessions Work Experience Week Opportunity to visit places of work through curriculum and extra-curricular led trips Morrisby Careers subject exploration 1:1 guidance for identified, targeted pupils Form time activities to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week Explicit links to careers in the curriculum during National Careers Week
Year 11	Weekly careers focus form time Post 16 taster sessions with various further education providers Post 16 pathways evening Application support Engineering workshop led by British Airways Apprenticeship Evening ASK apprenticeships application workshop ASK apprenticeships mock assessment centre workshop Participation in the Wadham Project in partnership with Wadham College Berkhamsted School Sixth Form visit for scholarship pupils Application support 1:1 personal guidance Form time activities to celebrate National Apprenticeship Week Explicit links to careers in the curriculum during National Careers Week

To maintain quality and ensure compliance with the latest statutory guidance, the careers strategy will be reviewed every two years and the impact of the careers programme will be measured and evaluated regularly.

Pupils

It can be difficult to know where to start in making decisions about your future. However, career planning and exploration is important as it allows you to:

Make informed choices
Identify goals and produce an action plan of how you will achieve these
Develop your skills and experience that are relevant to your area of interest – this in turn will enhance your employability as you can demonstrate that you are motivated, proactive, and well prepared for the further studies/employment

You may or may not know what you want to do in the future, but a good place to start is to think about:

What are my strengths and what would those around me say I am good at?
What do I enjoy doing? This can be in school, through extra-curricular or in your spare time
What opportunities are available now and in the future? Do I know what jobs are declining/increasing?
What motivates me?

Please see a list of resources at the bottom of the page, that you can use to explore your career ideas and consider the choices and pathways available

Parents

With an array or careers information and an ever changing labour market, it can be difficult to know where to look and what to read when it comes to understanding what is available to your child. The choices available to your child today, are likely to be very different to what was available to you at school. However, parental guidance has always played a significant role in a pupils decision making and so it is important you have access to relevant and up-to-date information. Our careers programme sets out the range of opportunities available, which aims to develop pupils sense of self, knowledge of the working world and to raise ambitious aspirations for their future.

For more advice and careers information, specifically for parents, please visit:

Parent Adviser - http://www.parentadviser.co.uk/
Parent Adviser is another handy site, helping parents simplify the confusing process and finances involved in applying to higher education, helping your child choose the right course, league tables and alternatives to college and university. You can also sign up to the Parent Adviser Community and join the forum to discuss issues and share advice with fellow parents/carers
Parental Guidance - http://www.parentalguidance.org.uk/
Parental Guidance offers clear, concise and impartial information on the post 16 choices available. Led by experienced careers writers and advisers, this website is a helpful guide to parents, with useful articles, news and updates, from preparing applications and interviews to looking at labour market information
Chiltern Academy CEIAG Hub link

If you have any careers related questions concerning your child, please contact Miss Walker (careers leader) on 01582 310644 or email zwalker@chiltern-academy.co.uk

Employers

To increase pupil’s awareness of the world of work and the knowledge and skills required, we endeavour to provide a range of employers and careers related opportunities to each of our pupils. Below are some examples of careers activities an employer could get involved with:

Offer a work experience placement through your organisation to one or a group of our year 10 pupils
Take part in our Business, Education, Skills and Partnership (BESP) events where pupils ask you questions about your job role, the organisation you work for and your careers journey
Provide a careers insight talk to pupils about your career path or sector in which you work in
If you work in a growing industry, share with pupils the upcoming opportunities that they may be available to them
Deliver/support a subject lesson specific to the industry in which you work in; bringing real-life context to a particular subject area or topic
Offer a mentoring programme to enhance pupils employability skills
Deliver an activity/skills based workshop i.e. CV writing, interview preparation, team building task

If you are a business or an employer and would like to support our pupils in any of the above activities and build a mutually beneficial relationship with the school, please get in touch with our Careers Leader, Zoe Walker on 01582 310644 or email zwalker@chiltern-academy.co.uk

Staff

There are many ways in which staff can promote careers education and link curriculum learning:

Schemes of work and lesson plans show how career relevant learning is embedded into your teaching
Motivate and encourage pupils to be ambitious and to reach their full potential
Talk to pupils about the careers related to your subject
Provide pupils with impartial, up-to-date and accurate advice on the pathways available and the skills in demand from employers
Share careers related resources with pupils such as labour market information, local initiatives/opportunities and useful website links
Get involved with nationally recognised events such as National Apprenticeship Week and National Careers Week
Organise extracurricular activities to develop and enhance pupils’ core competencies such as teamwork, communication and leadership
Encourage pupils to take onus of their careers learning journey through independent research tasks
Inform pupils of contacts within school that can support them in their decision making, particularly at key transitional stages
Organise employer visits and industry trips to promote pupils understanding of the world of work
Invite employers in to give a careers talk, share expertise or provide real life context to a topic