As an important milestone in preparing students for life beyond school, 167 of our Year 10 students spent a week this term completing a work experience placement. This is three times the number of students we have had out on work experience than in previous years, and the students did exceptionally well in a broad choice of job roles and businesses.
Some students had a firm idea of where they wanted to work and the experience they wished to gain, others found the time a useful introduction to the world of work as they decide what they want to do – their ‘employers’ ranged from pharmacists to garages, solicitors to hairdressers. Other students found placements in primary schools, nurseries, shops and even in ‘back office’ functions at The Radclyffe School
Careers Lead Miss Parkinson said, “The employers have had nothing but praise for our students. Some of the young people have successfully secured summer and part time jobs! It has been a pleasure to hear the success stories from employers on how our students have applied themselves and most importantly a number of students now have direction for their future ambitions.”
On behalf of the Careers Team, we would like to thank all the employers for supporting our students and providing such worthwhile experiences that all the young people have appreciated greatly!
For students who chose not to go out on work experience, a special week of learning in school offered its own inspiring insight into the world of work and the bewildering choice of careers that are available now, or could be in the future.
Monday and Tuesday provided the students with ‘Employer Encounters’, as they got to meet people working in a broad range of businesses and other organisations from across Oldham and beyond.
We followed that up with a day focused on students’ next steps, what they will need to do as they move on from The Radclyffe School in just a year’s time. While college might be the most popular route, it isn’t the only one available, and students gained a better understanding of all the possible routes so they can choose the one that suits them best. The day was completed with an inspiring presentation from one of our past students, Ashraf Ali who has set up his own business, Blue Apple Marketing.
Thursday’s sessions were led by employability expert Matt Frank, with the day supported by staff from Oldham Council, Salford NHS, Oldham College, National Rail and many more.
Day 5 was all about key employability skills. The students were led by KPMG and gave our students an insight into different careers and what it is like to work for a large global business. Andrew from KPMG with the support of our staff got the students thinking about different technologies and solutions to tackling and responding to real life problems faced by KPMG clients. The students were excited by the potential impact of the emerging technologies they explored.
