Personal Development - Careers, Enrichment and Challenge

Careers Talks, Events and Assemblies
We like to make our students aware of all the pathways open to them and to this end we bring in training providers and employers for talks, workshops, and special assemblies.

Discovery Workshops
On 4 July Year 8 had a sector insight session with Amita Panesar from SSCL and Sopra Steria on Data Management, how it is used in business and how companies like Facebook use our data. They also had a look at some of the careers available in Data.

Year 9 had a live virtual insight session on the 10 July with Maydencroft. From forestry and farmland to rivers and wetlands, Maydencroft create, restore and maintain beautiful nature reserves and spectacular urban landscaping projects. They work with the old and the new, from historic landscapes to next-generation developments. Their session covered environmental and green careers from forest rangers, landscape architects and aborists to environmental surveyors and green construction workers.

Inspirational Speaker
Year 12 students had an interesting talk from Tom Wilkinson on 23 June. Tom has recently been CEO of a global healthcare company and has worked for several international companies that have taken him around many parts of the world. Aside from his business background, he’s also qualified to guide people in the Alps and other mountainous areas. Even though that all sounds great, Tom was here to share how it hasn’t at all been plain sailing and has had a lot of setbacks along the way, but he’s going to share what he believes it takes to do well in whatever career path you choose to take. His message to take away was you may not be the best academic student, but you can all have courage, work hard and make yourself useful – these are the steppingstones to a productive career and future.

Employability Workshop
Year 12 students interested in taking the apprenticeship route were invited to attend an Employability workshop on 14 July with George Stone, the HR Director and his associate, Michale Long, from Shields - a Telecoms tech company. Both George and Michael have many years of recruitment experience and they delivered an enjoyable and extremely useful session on how to create a unique and eye-catching CV and how to prepare for a great interview and have offered ongoing CV support to the students who attended.

Taster Day at Langley College
Year 10 students who are thinking of college as a possible Post 16 option attended a Taster Day at Langley College on 3 July. Student picked two subjects to try out from a range of courses on offer at the college, including Childcare & Education, Trades, Engineering, Hair & Beauty, Hospitality & Catering, motor vehicle, sport and Travel, Tourism and Aviation.