Encouragement of professions for young people

• The new vocational program will open the eyes of primary school children to the world of future job opportunities and challenge stereotypes.
• In order for young people to take advantage of the new law, they have the opportunity to explore the variety of exciting career paths available to them, including both technical and academic career paths.
• It is part of the Government’s drive to ensure all young people receive high-quality advice to make informed choices about the skills they need for a successful career.

Primary school students will benefit from a new careers program that will encourage early thinking about future careers, while challenging aspirations and stereotypes.

The evidence shows that as children enter primary school, they begin to form ideas about their future. Linking lessons to different age-appropriate careers, training and skills, the program will bring learning to life and propel students into the world of work. It will also provide opportunities for students to meet employers and role models from a range of sectors, helping to raise their aspirations and connect their learning with future skills, jobs and careers.

From January 1, young people will also benefit from strengthened vocational advice through the change in the law, students aged 8-13 will have at least six opportunities to meet various technical education providers. By hearing directly from training providers, students will understand the full range of options available to them, including apprenticeships, T Levels and Higher Technical Qualifications, not just the traditional academic route.

This requires every secondary school to provide students with at least one work experience by age 16 and another by age 18, giving them exposure to skills that are valued in the workplace. have a great career.

The primary school scheme will be rolled out in 55 disadvantaged areas of the country, where school results are the weakest and it delivers on a long-standing commitment in the Schools White Paper. It will support more than 600,000 pupils in more than 2,200 primary schools, giving them the start they need to boost their ambitions, and is worth £2.6m.

Skills, Learning and Higher Education Minister Robert Halfon said:

To deliver the future workforce this country needs, careers advice and work experience to help young people of all backgrounds move up the ladder of opportunity is essential.

The changes we are making to boost our careers program will raise ambitions from an early age in thousands of primary school children across the country, while providing opportunities to unlock talent, think skills, connect with employers and experience different workplaces.

He will coordinate the new primary career program The Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC), works with Teach First which will train and support disadvantaged primary school teachers to deliver the scheme to students.

Oli de Botton, CEO of The Careers & Enterprise Company said:

From my time as a manager I know how important it is to inspire young people about their future, raise their vision and dispel stereotypes. Our new first grade program will bring career inspiration to children early in their school life by connecting them with role models and showing how different subjects relate to jobs.

This program will develop teachers’ skills to deliver career-related learning in lessons. It will help young people from disadvantaged communities explore the world of work in an exciting and meaningful way, raising aspirations and reducing barriers, encouraging children to dream big.’

Note to editors

• The new primary school career program will run until 2025 and will be delivered by CEC’s four Career Centers in the first year, 10 more in the Second Year and another 9 in the Third Year. The initiative will bring together primary schools in local areas and provide teachers with training provided by Teach First to help teachers develop and deliver careers programmes.
• In February 2022, we identified 55 Education Investment Areas (EIAs), previously referred to as “hot spots”. These are the areas of the country where school results are the weakest and have been for a long time. In these EIAs, the Department of Education aims to target investments, support and actions that help children of all backgrounds and backgrounds succeed at the highest levels.
• The original provider access legislation (sometimes referred to as the ‘Baker clause’) came into force in January 2018 and placed a new legal obligation on all maintained schools and academies to publish a policy statement outlining options for providers of technical education and apprenticeships. Informing students of the 8-13 academic year about approved educational qualifications or practices.
• From 1 January 2023, strengthened legislation on access to providers came into force through the Skills and Post-16 Education Act, due to the legal requirement for schools to ensure that all students aged 8-13 have at least six opportunities to connect with providers of approved technical education qualifications. learnings
• Supplier meetings are one of the activities we expect schools to offer in our professional framework, Gatsby Benchmarks. We also expect secondary schools to offer every student at least one high-quality encounter with an employer every year from age 11, and to offer every student at least one workplace experience by age 16 and another experience by age 18.