Careers Education and Employability - Futures
Careers Programme Information
Careers Leader – Mrs Lorraine McCormac: lorrainemccormac@bbrook.co.uk
Aim and Vision - 'Futures' at Billing Brook School
At Billing Brook School, our Futures (careers) curriculum is designed to prepare every young person for a successful and meaningful adult life. We believe that preparing for the future is about far more than employment; it is about developing the skills, confidence and independence needed to thrive in everyday life, contribute to the community and access opportunities beyond school. We feel this curriculum design and focus supports the aspirations and needs of our pupils at Billing Brook. Drawing on our wider Preparing for Life vision, we aim to support pupils to develop increasing independence, community participation and employability through real-life, purposeful experiences.
Our Futures curriculum focuses on three key areas:
Life
Pupils learn the practical skills needed for adulthood, including making choices, communicating needs, following routines, managing money and belongings, personal organisation, self-care, safety, independence and accessing their local community.
Community
We support pupils to become active members of their communities through volunteering, helping others, participating in community projects and developing a sense of responsibility. Pupils learn that they can make a positive contribution and have an important role to play in society.
Work
Through enterprise, work-related learning and practical experiences, pupils develop essential employability skills such as following instructions, completing tasks, working with others, accepting support, responding to feedback, managing breaks, working safely and understanding workplace expectations.
Our pupils engage in a wide range of meaningful experiences including community cafés, enterprise projects, retail activities, administration tasks, technology support, grounds maintenance, hospitality, volunteering and community contribution projects. These opportunities help pupils develop transferable skills, discover their strengths and build confidence in real-world settings.
We recognise that success looks different for every young person. Futures supports pupils to move towards a range of ambitious and appropriate destinations, including specialist college, supported learning, adult provision, volunteering, supported internships and, where appropriate, paid employment.
Through Futures, we aim to ensure that every pupil leaves Billing Brook School as independently as possible, equipped with the skills, experiences and confidence to live a fulfilled, purposeful and self-determined adult life.
We believe that Futures (Careers) enables students to:
In Key Stage 4 and 5 specifically, we are preparing students to live as independently as possible with a life filled with meaningful and purposeful activity. Although this is something we aim for throughout the school life of our students, in KS4-5 we increase the focus within these areas to support transition into their next stage of life.
We believe that futures (careers) help to prepare students for adulthood, including, where appropriate, the world of work.
Students are provided with opportunities to:
•Better understand and know themselves; their skills; their interests and their personal qualities; so they can self-advocate and prepare for their future choices and employment pathways
•Have developed a variety of work skills
•Have improved their confidence so that they can take their next steps.
Futures (careers) addresses 3 main areas
•All about me- Developing understanding of self; strengths, areas of development, skills and interests
•Work – work experience, visits, volunteering - Learning about opportunities for adulthood; with a variety of ‘work’ opportunities provided
•Transition - Developing skills for life; preparing for next steps; transferring skills and supporting life after Billing Brook
Key skills include:
|
Speaking |
Listening |
Problem solving |
Creativity |
|
Staying positive |
Aiming higher |
Leadership |
Team working |
Labour Market Information (LMI) is used to make informed career choices. We use this information to guide and assist our young people towards the world of work and adulthood. The information is related to employment standards and requirements, education and training, and career options. There is also additional information in the link below to help young people prepare for adulthood.
If you are an employer and feel that you could help our students experience the world of work, please get in touch. This could be a work experience placement, a question and answer session or maybe a virtual tour of your place of work.
Useful websites
Future Destinations
A is a digital platform to provide information and signposting to education and employment post 16 options for young people with disabilities
Future Destinations | A platform to support education leavers with disabilities
SEMLEP
Career Opportunities broadcasts about local occupational groups.
South East Midlands labour market information.
Relevant and detailed labour market information directly from employers. This will enable better-informed decision making about attainment and training provision and content, aligned with the requirements of employers.
School Labour Market Information (semlep.com)
Prospects
Information on jobs, work experience and pathways
National Careers Service
Find out what a job involves and if it’s right for you.
Explore careers | National Careers Service
icould
Take a closer look at selected subjects and issues, with a selection of videos, guides and advice. Explore careers - icould
Career Zones
Explore the Career Zones to find out all about the different jobs you can do, what to study and how to get there, whether you're planning to leave school or heading to collegei. Each zone has helpful interviews, advice and links to set you on the right path to career superstardom.
Success at School: Career Zones
Specific Job categories
Construction GoConstruct - the construction industry guide to careers
Construction Is A Career Like No Other | Go Construct
Be creative - Creative Industries Federation - Discover creative careers https://discovercreative.careers/#/
Healthcare - NHS Find Your Career
https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/FindYourCareer
and
Care Careers – Skills for Care
Think Care Careers (skillsforcare.org.uk)
Transport & Logistics careers
https://www.allaboutcareers.com/career-industry/transport-logistics/
