CEIAG Policy

CAREERS EDUCATION, INFORMATION, ADVICE AND GUIDANCE (CEIAG) POLICY

Rationale

Careers education and guidance programmes play a major part in helping young people choose programmes that suit their interests, abilities and individual needs. A robust careers programme helps avoid disengagement, puts school learning into a wider and more relevant context, and helps raise aspirations. The Victoria College programme will help our students to plan and manage their careers effectively, ensuring progression which is ambitious and aspirational. It will promote equality of opportunity, embrace diversity and challenge stereotypes. The policy will be guided by the Gatsby benchmarks and conform to statutory requirements.

Context

From September 2013, The Education Act of 2011 placed UK schools under a duty to ensure that all registered pupils in Year 8-13 have access to independent, accurate and impartial information advice and guidance and Victoria College have followed these guidelines. Schools are free to make arrangements for careers guidance which best suit the needs of their students. Victoria College have in house arrangements for careers guidance and engage with Skills Jersey to assist with impartial advice where appropriate. This could include website or telephone helpline access and/or face to face support from a specialist provider where needed. A further addition to the Technical and Further Education Act 2017 states that schools in England “must ensure there is an opportunity for a range of education and training providers to access registered pupils during the relevant phase of their education, for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships”.

At each point where we deal with ‘leavers’ we strive to ensure that they have access to purposeful advice and guidance, including information and support regarding apprenticeships, employment or re-commencement of study with another provider.

Commitment

Victoria College is committed to providing all students in Year 7-13 with a programme of activities and supporting activity. This will be guided by the Gatsby benchmarks for ensuring best practice.

Careers and Employability Programme

The current programme is delivered through a combination of methods; including PSHE where the programme is delivered to Year 7-9 for one hour a week across half a term. For Year 10 and 11 during tutor time and for Year 12 one hour a week for the whole year in curriculum time. The programme is also supported through assemblies, presentations, employer visits, independent work experience, seminars, workshops and 1:1 sessions.

There are several special events held (or attended) such as the Jersey Skills show, Higher Education Fair, UCAS & Student Finance Evening. The Careers section of our school website contains an overview of the planned activities for each year.

To enable students to track their progress throughout their time at Victoria College and have a record of their achievements and goals with regards to careers, we have bought into an online platform ‘Unifrog’. Unifrog enables students to:

Have access to live apprenticeships.
Complete MOOCs (massive open online courses).
Access live labour market information against jobs.
Keep information in their own ‘locker’ about their careers journey.
Add their own information about activities they have undertaken and competencies they have achieved against a set of criteria.

Aims

To help students develop the skills and confidence to make realistic and informed decisions about their futures and to manage the transitions from one stage of their education, training and work to the next.

Objectives

To ensure that students develop the skills and attitudes necessary for success in adult and working life.
To make students aware of the range of opportunities which are realistically available to them in continued education and training at 14+, 16+ and 18+.
To equip students with the necessary decision-making skills to manage those same transitions.
To develop in students an awareness of the wide variety of education, training and careers opportunities both locally and nationally.
To encourage students to make good use of the paper-based, virtual and staff resources available to them, in order that they can make informed and appropriate choices throughout their school journey. These can include subject specific careers lessons within curricular and extra-curricular time.
To foster links between the school, local businesses and further/higher education establishments.
To ensure there is an opportunity for a range of education and training providers to access registered pupils during the relevant phase of their education, for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships.
To enable students to experience the world of work and develop transferable skills, for example; independence; resilience; personal learning and thinking skills.
To ensure that wherever possible, all young people leave the school to enter employment, further education or training.
To maintain a culture of high aspirations.
To promote equality of opportunity, embrace diversity, challenge stereotypes and ensure all students who require any extra assistance and guidance to reach their potential, such as SEN students or students eligible for pupil premium.

Learning Outcomes

Students should be able to:

Assess their achievements, qualities and skills.
Present this information as appropriate.
Use this information for personal development.
Set career and learning targets.
Recognise and deal accordingly with influences on their attitudes, values and behaviour in relation to work.
Recognise the value and impact their activities at school can have on their future.

Implementation

The school offers impartial and independent advice via:

Skills Jersey visits to Victoria College to talk to groups in Year 7, 9, 11 and 12. Independent Careers guidance must:
- Be presented in an impartial manner.
- Feature information on the range of education or training options, including apprenticeships and other vocational pathways.
- Promote the best interests of the students to whom it is given.
Access for all students and staff to the Unifrog website and other appropriate sources of guidance.
Promoting the National Careers Service Website and Helpline.
Promotion of independent websites relevant to all career needs, from choosing a university or apprenticeship to pursuing a career.
Access to relevant external speakers offering independent sources of information including local employers, representatives from professional bodies and organisations including, representatives of higher education establishments and former students, who are a valuable resource.

All staff have a part to play in the implementation of this policy through their role as tutors and as subject specialists. Careers information and resources are located in the Careers library, which contains up-to-date, impartial information presented in a variety of media. It is reviewed and renewed on a regular basis by the Careers Coordinator. College and University prospectuses are current and visual displays on the notice boards are kept current in both the careers library and the Sixth Form centre. The careers library can be accessed by students before school, during break and lunch times and after school.

Monitoring, Review and Evaluation

Parents are welcome to give feedback on any aspect of the CEIAG programme to the Careers Coordinator, Suzanne Job. Student voice activities are conducted with students from various year groups at least once a year.

Recording, Assessment and Reporting

Students’ progress is monitored via their Unifrog profile, and remains with them for their entire duration at Victoria College. The work is individual and personal to the student and is a log of activities completed and employability skills gained - these skills are not graded.

Entitlement

Every student at Victoria College is entitled to a thorough, personalised and aspirational programme of careers events throughout their time at the school. They are given support to whichever route they choose, whether this occurs at the end of KS4 or the end of KS5. They will come into contact with Careers, Employability and Enterprise in the following ways:

Through a variety of year group assemblies.
Through their PSHE lessons, which run for half a term, one hour per week, Year 7-10, tutor time for Year 11 and one hour of curriculum time for year the whole of Year 12.
Parents/carers are welcome to speak to their child’s form tutor, Head of Year, a member of the sixth form team, SENCO or the careers coordinator if they have any questions or concerns about their child’s progress and their child’s participation in careers events.
Students, parents/carers are entitled to have access to information about the options processes - provided via newsletter, on the school website and on information evenings.
Each KS3 & 4 students will have at least one individual careers interview with the careers co-ordinator, or a member of the Senior Leadership Group by the end of KS4.
Each KS5 student also receives at least one interview with a member of the sixth form team, and those with any concerns or queries can either self-refer or be referred for an additional interview with an independent careers advisor at Skills Jersey.

Partnerships

The CEIAG programme is greatly enhanced through links with several partners who ensure the students’ learning is up to date and relevant. We strive constantly to expand and improve links with employers where we have 3 companies who have excellent links with Victoria College through Old Victorians and assisting with career events, plus we have excellent links with other local groups.

Parental involvement is encouraged at all stages. Victoria College recognises that parents/carers remain the biggest influence on a young person’s career choices and as such we offer parents help and guidance at critical stages in the students’ time with us; for example, in Year 9 with KS4 options decisions, Year 11 with 16+ choices and Year 12 and 13 with UCAS and other applications. Parents also have the opportunity to speak to the Careers Coordinator by phone, by appointment or at any Year 9 to 13 parental consultation events. We also have a dedicated section for parents on our school website on Careers, Employability and Enterprise.

Management of provider access

Procedure Requests should be directed to Head of Careers, Suzanne Job on s.job@vcj.sch.je or 01534 638266.

Opportunities for access

A number of events, integrated into the school careers programme, will offer providers an opportunity to come into school to speak to pupils and/or their parents/carers. The Careers section of the school website is regularly updated with events the school is running. Victoria College invites Skills Jersey to options evenings yearly and offers them the opportunity to leave information if they cannot send representation. Please speak to our Head of Careers to identify the most suitable opportunity for you.

Premises and facilities

The school will make the main hall, classrooms or private meeting room available for discussions between the provider and students, as appropriate to the activity. The school will also make available AV and other specialist equipment to support provider presentations. This will all be discussed and agreed in advance of the visit with the Head of Careers. Providers are welcome to leave a copy of their prospectus or other relevant course literature at the Careers Library, which is managed by our Head of Careers. The Careers Library is available to all students at lunch and break times.

Date of Next Review: January 2024