The Joseph Whitaker School

Key Stage 3 (Year 7, 8 and 9)

Year 7

You will be delivered a series of PSHCE lessons looking at your soft skills, changes in life, your place in society and looking into the future.
You will attend a careers fair where you will have encounters with a variety of employers and further and higher education providers.
You will take part in a curriculum based projects with direct links to an employer.

Year 8

You will undertake a series of lessons entitled ‘The World of Work’ You will be looking at self awareness, making decisions, goal planning, gender stereotypes and skills, values and qualities.
You will attend a careers fair where you will have encounters with a variety of employers and further and higher education providers.
You will take part in a curriculum based projects with direct links to an employer.

Year 9

You will undertake a variety of lessons linked to the Options process, looking at your strengths and weaknesses, reasons for choosing a subject and where you would like to be in the future. You will also be introduced to UNIFROG, Start, ICould and the National Careers Website.
You will have the opportunity to attend the Options Information Evening at the school in preparation for making your choices
DANCOP will deliver ‘Where will my qualification take me?’, ‘Careers outside the box’, ‘Introduction to Careers in STEM’ sessions.
You will attend a careers fair where you will have encounters with a variety of employers and further and higher education providers
You will take part in an Enterprise competition that is delivered through a series of PSHCE lessons and concludes with a final judged by employers invited in from outside of school.
You will take part in a curriculum based projects with direct links to an employer

What Next?

All staff are available to talk to you about option choices.

There are a number of websites to explore (If you are in Year 9 you will already have accessed some of these in your PSHCE lessons) Visit the Careers Hub to find the links to these resources

Key Stage 4 (Year 10 and 11)

Year 10

You will be delivered a series of lessons during Life and Moral Skills looking at your skills and qualities and where you see yourself in the future. You will be supported in creating a CV.
You have the opportunity to take part in work experience. You will be guided through this process and supported in contacted potential employers.
You will take part in a ‘Employer Networking’ event which will involve you meeting a number of employers and finding out about their career field. You will also get the chance to ‘Have a Go’ in a number of different industries.
DANCOP will deliver a number of sessions during Life and Moral skills, including ‘ Employability’, ‘Interview Skills’ and a ‘Transferable Skills’ in a workshop form.
You will attend a careers fair where you will have encounters with a variety of employers and further and higher education providers

Year 11

Interview Skills Day – this is a chance to experience a real interview with an outside employer. They will have a copy of your CV and treat you as a potential employee taking part in an interview for their company. It is a chance for them to support you with interview skills and give you pointers and tips on both interview technique and your CV.
You will have a variety of careers presentations and talks during registration.
You will have a number of different employers and further education providers delivering careers assemblies.
You will attend a careers fair where you will have encounters with a variety of employers and further and higher education providers

Work Experience

All students are encouraged to take part during the dedicated Work Experience week in the summer term. You will receive guidance and support from your Life and Moral Skills teacher, your form tutor and other members of staff in school. You will create a CV that you will be able to send to employers with a supporting letter or email.

You will be introduced to a database and provided with a username and password to find employers that have previously taken work experience students. You will have a half term to secure a place and when this has been confirmed you need to fill in a work placement form and hand it in to student services. From there, the school will use a company named ‘Safety Measures’ to carry out the health and safety checks and then your placement will be confirmed.

You will be briefed before you attend your placement and your form tutor will ring during the week to check your progress. On returning to school you will be de-briefed and evaluate the experience.

What Next?

Talk to staff about different subjects post-16
Attend careers/other providers assemblies and sign up to careers presentations and talks within school
Look out for open days of different providers and the school Sixth Form
Explore the websites listed in the careers hub

Labour Market Information

Understanding labour market information (LMI) is becoming increasingly important as the world of work changes. If you have asked any of the questions below you have been asking about LMI!

Understanding LMI can help inform and future proof your career choices, as well as support your career planning.

Labour Market Information (LMI) is a useful tool to help research future jobs in the local area, understand the skills needed for certain roles and the demand for future employment.

LMI helps to break down the complex ‘world of work’– ranging from descriptions of different careers, their entry routes, promotional prospects, salaries paid, skills and qualifications needed, etc. Crucially for young people, LMI also covers future demand – what kinds of jobs will be in demand after leaving school and what kinds of skills will be needed.

We have sourced some links and resources for you to explore Labour Market Information both locally and nationally.

Useful Links

All students have access to our unifrog platform which allows them to research options and opportunities, complete activities and record their careers-related interactions in one central place. This includes Post 16 and a18 pathways.