Benchmark 3: Addressing The Needs Of Each Student

Schools and colleges should have a strategic overview of a student’s journey and should in place, a scheme of learning which is supported by inspirational encounters and activities, that actively challenge stereotypes and raise aspirations.

Each student is an individual with a wide range of influences; family, peers, teachers and careers guidance professionals, as well as social factors such as gender, disability and personality, can all influence decision making – as can the relative popularity of different TV shows and celebrities.

There cannot be a general ‘one size fits all’ career programme; Careers Leaders should consider how their programme meets the needs of all students regardless of ability and social background.

Gatsby Benchmarks recommend that Careers Leaders use systematic recording, to monitor and ensure all students are actively included within the careers plan and ideally that students themselves are able to access these records to help them take responsibility for their own learning.

All students should have:

A scheme of learning & experiences that meet their own individual needs
Encounters with a range of employers to inspire them about different career pathways
Encounters with successful role models who can connect with students of similar backgrounds to help raise aspirations
An understanding of what their individual career journey will look like in terms of experiences, skill building & knowledge gathering
Access to their career learning records

Raising aspirations and challenging stereotypes

Students need inspirational activities and encounters in order to help raise aspirations. Too often students have low expectations and believe that there are certain ‘limitations’ on the opportunities available to them. There is often so much information about career options that students can easily become overwhelmed and switch off failing to properly investigate what is being offered. Equally a single encounter with an inspiring person can be enough to spark the interest of a student and have a huge impact on their own aspirations for the future.

Encounters with employers & alumni

Employers who share their career journey and the nature of their role can have a huge impact on a student, in terms of what might interest them as well as what is achievable.

It is essential to break down any barriers which might be hindering a student from reaching their potential, challenging stereotypes in all areas.

Social mobility research shows that almost half of people believe backgrounds define limitations in the workplace.

Planning career activities

Key points to remember:

Ensure the activities on offer do not reinforce stereotypes or generalisations, which might prevent further exploration from students.
When inviting professionals in to speak with students, seek examples which challenge gender stereotypes (Female engineers, male nurses & carers, female coders, male nursery nurses etc.)
When discussing different industry sectors, ensure a range of roles are covered & not just the generic ones
Find inspiring speakers from deprived backgrounds that have achieved successful careers

Effective Record Keeping

In order to take an effective approach to delivering a careers programme, it is essential that it has both strategic and operational elements. By identifying why we want to deliver a robust careers plan and what outcomes we hope to see will identify what information and evidence we need to record in order to measure it effectively.

Keep systematic records

Each student’s careers learning and employability skills development should be recorded while they are at school or college, and students should have access to this information.

Examples of effective record keeping can vary including individual reflective workbooks owned by the students, right through to spreadsheets detailing the careers plan for the year and the attendance of each student at each activity.

Well-kept records enable us to track the consistency and impact of the careers programme. Staff know what students CEIAG needs are and where they are in terms of their career planning.

Key points

Effective records should have input from students, their tutors, careers advisers and anyone who is participating in the student’s careers education. This will allow Careers Leaders to:

Manage the student’s journey
Inform decision making & agree next steps
It is good practice to develop a scheme of learning to support students from year 7 throughout their time at school, which defines the careers interventions they will experience. This can then link directly to the records made of each & outline the journey each student takes. It also helps to include other staff in the CEIAG delivery plan
An effective record of activity will help inform the student of their next steps & becomes a key piece of information for careers guidance interviews.

The Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) have developed a number of digital tools to support Career Leaders in recording and monitoring Careers Advice and Guidance activities. All schools and colleges should be using these tools going forwards to audit their current careers provision and to keep track of their careers related activity. Further information about Compass and Tracker on this page.

Destination data and management

Schools should be sharing accurate and timely data with their local authority on pupil transitions and destinations. Gatsby recommends that schools collect and maintain accurate data for each pupil on their destinations for 3 years after they leave Year 11.

Supporting SEND students

It is essential to consider the needs of ALL students particularly those with SEND and how best to ensure careers programmes are fit for purpose for this group. Within any school or college setting there are students with a range of disabilities and needs ranging from those with an EHCP to those with more ‘hidden’ challenges. Students with an EHC plan are supported with a much more person centred approach which is designed to meet the needs identified within the plan however this does not always mean effective careers education.

Key considerations

The key considerations include:

How is written information presented? Schools have LMI posters, workbooks, quiz sheets & website information supporting careers planning & activity, but is it accessible & relevant for all students? Is it available in other formats where necessary?
Is the school recruiting a range of employers/alumni speakers who can share stories about their own challenges & how were they overcome?
Can the careers workshops & activities be delivered in different ways for students who may have sensory sensitivity?
How is the SENCO contributing to the planning of events?
Is the range of industry sectors relevant to the students that they are being delivered to?
Is information about accessible pathways and supported employment routes being included?