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PHSE Citizenship & Work Related Learning

Work Experience

Work experience is a fundamental part of Work Related Learning (WRL) and is the entitlement of every student in addition to a further five days of WRL activities across Years 10 and 11.

Work Experience at Saint Paul's has traditionally taken place for Year 10 during the last two weeks of the Academic year. In many ways, this has seemed an ideal time because of the lack of disruption to the academic curriculum and the freeing of staff to undertake preparation for the new academic year. However, in many ways this is not an ideal time because if the impact of Work Experience is to be maximised, the profile needs to be raised and the experiences evaluated very soon after the event.

In order to ensure that all students get maximum benefit from their Work Experience the following needs to be considered:

• The timing of the two week placement; this could be reviewed after the move to the new site and any changes made would happen in consultation with Greenwich Education Business Partnership (EBP). Ideally, we would like a slot in the last half-term of Year 10 but without a holiday immediately before or after. The timing at present is also inappropriate for the very small minority of students who are unsuccessful in Work Experience, as it means that problems are very often not dealt with properly;
• An accreditation (to be discussed with Greenwich EBP) which acknowledges the achievement of students who successfully complete Work Experience;
• Arrangements need to be formalised for DSP (Designated Special Provision) and other Statemented students. Is the time length appropriate? What support are these students to be given and by whom? It must be taken into account that many of the students are not independent travellers and are 'bussed' to school; this is by no means suggesting that they should in any way be excluded from Work Experience, but that their needs are fully catered for.
• The matching of students to placements. Work Experience is not in any way intended to be a 'taster' for one particular job or profession, but clearly some placements do not allow students as much experience of the world of work as others. There are four main types of work experience providers:

• Administrative
• Practical
• Primary and Nursery School
• Retail

We need to ensure much more parity between students and their placement.

• Of the 5 WRL days in KS4 it is proposed that at least one is dedicated to preparation for Work Experience and one for debriefing; ideally the debrief day should take place as soon as possible after Work Experience. On the preparation day, students will be divided according to the type of work they are undertaking and therefore they will be specifically prepared in essential matters such as health and safety as well as having a clearer understanding of what is expected of them in an unfamiliar environment. The preparation day would allow students to become more familiar with the Work Experience Planner and thus use it better, which would also be a huge advantage if and accreditation was to be given. The debrief day is essential if students are to reflect on their experience, evaluate what skills they have learnt and what they have achieved. They will also be asked to analyse the use of key skills and give examples of how these were used in the work place;
• The employers' reports need to have a higher profile, so that both positive and negative aspects can be highlighted to students and parents and relevant information, such as a particular strength or talent, can be used in school. We need to review how we can encourage all employers to return the reports - at present the number is less than 50%.
• The visiting of students on placements needs to be reviewed. All students are visited but it needs to be decided whether this is simply a monitoring visit to ensure that the student is safe and behaving or whether their visit is of greater importance. Obviously, students with special needs or identified behaviour problems need close monitoring by someone who has worked with the student in school. It may be that all students should have a more 'personalised' visit; liaising with the person visiting both before and after Work Experience. This would require a great deal of staff time and needs a great deal of consideration.

Careers education also needs a complete review and to be worked in with WRL. There are many agencies which we under use because of staff changes; the most obvious is Connexions, who offer a comprehensive advice service. At present, all Year 11 students and all Year 10 students on Work Related Courses are interviewed by Connexions, but this service would be significantly improved simply through improved co-ordination between the school and Connexions. It would also be very helpful to put on a Careers' Fair (possibly on a 'D Day') when not only local colleges are represented but also businesses and professional groups where contacts have been made through the Work Related Learning programme.

Students also need to be far more familiar with how to access careers' advice and systems need to be put in place whereby Year 10 and 11 students can get specific or generic information as well as advice on obtaining and filling in application forms.

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