Careers
Careers & Work Experience Curriculum
At Greenvale, we are committed to ensuring students are fully supported and guided to plan for their futures. We have a focus on developing students’ individual skills and interests to prepare them to play an active part in their local community. Our interpretation for developing employability skills refers to any skill which supports our students in life beyond school emphasising functional communication, independence, and a greater level of autonomy. These skills can be increasingly transferred into student interactions in the wider community and for some of our students ultimately into voluntary work or employment in the future.
The Careers & Work Experience Curriculum relates to a range of work-related and Preparation for Adulthood elements covered throughout the Greenvale School curriculum. This provides students with a high quality and impartial programme of advice and guidance enabling them to progress on to appropriate courses or employment in their future lives.
The Gatsby Benchmarks
Greenvale School uses the Gatsby Benchmarks to personalise careers guidance and learning to students on all pathways, and to review and evaluate careers provision. The benchmarks are:
Benchmark 1: A Stable Careers Programme
Benchmark 2: Learning from Career and Labour Market Information
Benchmark 3: Addressing the Needs of Each Pupil
Benchmark 4: Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers
Benchmark 5: Encounters with Employers and Employees
Benchmark 6: Experiences of Workplaces
Benchmark 7: Encounters with Further and Higher Education
Benchmark 8: Personal Guidance
Careers Provision
At Greenvale School, the curriculum content for Careers is taught across KS3, KS4 and KS5.
In Key Stages 3 and 4 this is mostly taught through the PSHE curriculum modules, National Careers Week and individual sessions. Key stage 5 has a discrete careers curriculum designed over three years to develop the skills of our students in preparing them for the wider world, this is delivered through Preparation for Adulthood, Skills towards Independence and PSHE modules. Students on the Woodland Pathway in KS5 will complete the ASDAN Personal, Social Development Award. We provide opportunities for our pupils to complete Work Experience in school and in the wider community setting both in KS4 and KS5. We work successfully with the Lewisham Work Experience Provider who provide placements for our pupils with local employers in Year 14.
There are a number of events, integrated into the school careers programme, which include opportunities for providers to come into school to speak to pupils and/or their parents.
The following table outlines examples of the opportunities provided for training and education providers to speak to students and/or their parents/carers.
|
|
AUTUMN TERM |
SPRING TERM |
SUMMER TERM |
|
KS3 (YEAR 7-9) |
Information Fayre National Careers Week
EHCP Annual reviews to focus on aspiration and employability |
PSHE Curriculum: Choices and Careers
National Careers Week
|
PFA – Transition planning meeting
External Speakers
|
|
KS4 (YEAR 10-11) |
PSHE Curriculum: Further Education
Information Fayre National Careers Week
EHCP Annual reviews to focus on aspiration and employability |
PSHE Curriculum: Careers and Paid Employment
National Careers Week |
PFA – Transition planning meeting
External Enterprise/ Employability Workshop
External Speakers
|
|
KS5 (YEAR 12-14) |
PFA: Workplace Environment/ Planning for my future
Information Fayre National Careers Week
EHCP Annual reviews to focus on aspiration and employability
Y14 - Parent’s Workshop for External Work Experience |
English Curriculum: Work Related
PFA: Training and Education/ Creating a CV
National Careers Week
External Careers Fayre’s |
PFA: Skills at Work/ Careers in my locality/ Getting a Job
Year 14 – Lewisham Work Experience with local employers
PFA – Transition planning meeting
ASDAN (PSD) – Preparation for Work, Community Action Healthy Living
Visits to Local Post-19 Providers
External Enterprise/ Employability Workshop
External Speakers
|
The provision offer for Careers is highly personalised and aims to be reflective of each individual. Student’s provision offers and outcomes will vary based on their individual pathway, for example.
Students on the Glade Pathway have the opportunity to explore: -
- Working together co-operatively with other students and staff
- People who help us at school and in the community
- Developing effective communication
- Completing class jobs or in school work experience
Students on the Grove Pathway have the opportunity to explore: -
- Participating in National Careers Week
- Effective communication with people who help us
- Working with others to develop skills and share personal qualities and interests
- Completing class jobs
- The completion of work experience in school in Year 14
Students on the Forest Pathway have the opportunity to explore: -
- Developing a greater understanding of themselves, their abilities and the range of opportunities available to them
- The completion of work related activities in KS4 and KS5 in school
- How to select a job of interest and work through the application and interview process to then carry out that job in school with greater confidence, organisational skills and effective communication
- An increasing emphasis on developing effective social and communication skills and the ability to work both independently and successfully with others to achieve a common goal
Students on the Woodland Pathway have the opportunity to explore:
- Skills and qualities needed for a wide range of jobs and careers and how this relates to their own skills, interests and aspirations
- The completion of Work Experience in KS4 and KS5 in school
- How to improve their own employability, work through the application and interview process to then carry out that job in school with greater confidence, organisational skills and effective communication
- An increasing emphasis on developing social skills and the ability to work both independently and successfully with others to achieve a common goal
- The completion of offsite Work Experience with local employers via the Lewisham Work Experience Provider
External Work Experience
Where appropriate; Year 14 students undertake a work experience placement. Students choose a career which is of interest to them. A work experience placement is sought to meet the students needs; special educational needs and/or additional learning needs, appropriate work experience placement provider, location, transport links and supervision. The Careers & Work Experience Coordinator visits the work experience placement provider’s premises to meet with the work experience placement personnel to discuss issues regarding the work experience placement. The Careers & Work Experience Coordinator completes a risk assessment of the working environment and working tasks to be performed. The work experience placement provider is fully involved in the risk assessment process. As the student undertakes the work experience placement, they complete a work experience diary. The work experience diary may contain the following elements depending on the location of the work experience provider and needs of the student, e.g. Travel arrangements, location of work experience placement, dates and timings, colleagues, type of work undertaken.
Contact:
Emily Garside
02084650740
The information on this page will be reviewed annually.