Experiences of workplaces
Why is this important
With the decline in part time employment for students, the opportunity to experience a workplace through a careers programme may be the only opportunity for students to gain an understanding of what it will be like to undertake work later in life.
This provides young people with invaluable employability skills and to understand expectations of employees such as punctuality, conduct and following instructions.
How to achieve 100%
There are a range of activities that can support this benchmark including workplace visits as part of a curriculum visit, short experiences lasting for one day or less, take your child to work days, and the traditional one or two week work experience.
Engage with curriculum teams to ensure that curriculum trips from school include an element that include experience of the workplace.
If whole year activities such as a traditional one or two week work experience are not undertaken it is important to carefully record all experiences at an individual student level.
It’s not all about block work experience placements
Gatsby Benchmark 6 describes experiences of workplaces as: “work visits, work shadowing and/or work experience”. It is important to approach this benchmark with the understanding that work experience is not synonymous with experiences of the workplace.
Schools and colleges should consider the flexible approaches recommended in the statutory guidance, which include:
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job shadowing
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work experience in school
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volunteering
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work experience (less than one week)
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work experience (one-two week block)
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work experience (regular/weekly commitment)
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workplace visits
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internships and holiday placements
Read the CEC report, ‘Work experience, job shadowing and workplace visits, what works?’, to find out more about the effectiveness of these activities, and for examples of best practice.
Check out these ideas for achieving Benchmark 6 from the CEC: Experiences of workplaces – Practical ideas for achieving Gatsby Benchmark 6
Make experiences of the workplace as meaningful as possible with this guide from the CEC: How to meet Gatsby Benchmark 6 more meaningfully and deliver positive student outcomes
Prompt Questions
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What is the intent of any experiences of work?
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What are key planned leaning outcomes from experiences of work?
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How are experiences of work implemented?
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How are experiences of the workplace progressive for students within the careers programme?
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How are students/teachers/employers and parents prepared for experiences of work?
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How are experiences of work evaluated? How is impact measured?
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How do experiences of work fit within a progressive careers programme?
Ideas
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Experiences of the workplace do not have to be the traditional 2 week block placement, it can be virtual, face to face, be part of a school trip, include activities, etc.
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Virtual experiences open up a national network of opportunities to students and often allow the student to see more of the business that they would from an in person visit
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Some schools have a ‘Take your son/daughter to work day’ for Key stage 3 but be aware that this type of event may serve to reinforce limited horizons rather than widening a students access to the world of work
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An experience of the workplace can take quite a bit of effort to organise so ensuring its as meaningful as possible is important. This webinar and resources aim to support you plan, implement and evaluate meaningful experiences of the workplace: BM6: How to meet Gatsby Benchmark 6 more meaningfully and deliver positive student outcomes
Important points to consider
For work experience to be effective there needs to be preparation and follow up classroom activities.
Where possible students should be involved in the selection of work experiences to help ensure that it is meaningful for them.
If organising group or individual experiences you will need to undertake Health and Safety Assessments or use a service that undertakes this on your behalf to protect the school and the student.
Best practice
Download the Virtual Work Experience guide: Delivering Virtual Work Experience and enriching work experience through digital media
This information is provided in partnership with the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC). For more information about CEC Careers Hubs please visit the Careers Hub Provider Access Policy.
Gatsby benchmark 6
Every pupil should have first-hand experiences of workplaces to help their exploration of career opportunities and expand their networks.
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