Careers

Castle Newnham’s aim is to build a first class careers programme which meets the eight Gatsby benchmarks of good careers guidance. We aim to develop our pupils’ employability skills, share information about local, national and international labour market information, guide pupils to explore and develop career ideas and high aspirations, and educate our young people on their choices of post 16 pathways.

We are a partner school of the South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP) and work closely with our Enterprise Coordinator and Adviser in order to prepare our young people for the world of work through this employer-engagement programme.

All pupils study careers topics within their PSHCE lessons. An outline of topics and annual events can be seen below:

Key Stage 3

Year 7	Year 8	Year 9
The World of Work	Enterprise Skills	Careers Planning
Interpersonal Skills	Workplace Skills	STEM and STEAM Careers
Teamwork	Employability Skills	Post 16 Options
Entrepreneurial Skills	Employment and Self employment	Post 16/18 Options
Choosing the right career

Key Stage 4

Year 10	Year 11
Preparing your CV for an interview	Rights and responsibilities whilst working and studying
Applications	How to get the job
Job Interviews	Searching for careers
Financial Planning	Working on a budget
Ethical finance	Long term financial planning

Each January we hold a ‘Bright Futures’ month for our secondary pupils. This focuses on further education and careers and has specific events taking place throughout the month. Guest speakers from law and journalism, through to catering and engineering, speak to our pupils about career options and qualifications needed. Pupils are encouraged to visit further educational institutes for example: Bedford College; University of Bedfordshire, Milton Keynes College and Newnham College, Cambridge.

We evaluate our careers programme using the ‘Compass’ evaluation tool which is based on the Gatsby Good Career Guidance Benchmarks. This enables us to compare our school to each of the 8 Gatsby Benchmarks, and allows us to identify areas for improvement and helps us to plan our careers’ strategy for the year ahead.

Alison Boston, our Careers Leader can be contacted via email at [email protected] or by calling the school on 01234 303403.

Information for Parents/Carers

We are always here to support you throughout your child’s school journey and with decisions for post 16. There are many websites out there with advice, guidance and information on careers, apprenticeships and further education. Please click here to see a video of some former pupils discussing their next steps.

Careers Advice for Parents

https://www.careersadviceforparents.org/

Parent Advisor

A website of advice for parents about career options for their children

http://www.pwc.co.uk/careers/school-jobs/ptzone.html

EY Building a Better Working World

https://ukcareers.ey.com/students/career-advice/parental-advice/

Useful Careers Links

Success at school

Success at School is the place for young people to explore careers, get the lowdown on top employers, and search for the latest jobs, courses and advice.

https://successatschool.org/

National Careers Service

They provide information, advice and guidance to help you make decisions on learning, training and work

https://nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk/

All About Careers

Career exploration, jobs and advice – all in one place

https://www.allaboutcareers.com/

Real stories to inspire your career

https://icould.com/

Looking for the perfect career?

https://www.prospects.ac.uk/

World Of Work Videos (YouTube)

WOW

Labour Market Information

For specific labour market information relating to Bedford, please click here.
Plan your study and work

https://www.careerpilot.org.uk/

Labour Market Information for All

LMI for All is an online data portal, which connects and standardises existing sources of high quality, reliable labour market information (LMI) with the aim of informing careers decisions.

http://www.lmiforall.org.uk/

Looking for a job?

Current available jobs

https://www.bedford.gov.uk/jobs-and-careers/jobs-hub/

www.indeed.co.uk

Apprenticeships combine practical training in a job with study. Click here to be transferred to a website called Amazing Apprenticeships. If you click on the ‘parents pack’ tab you will be able to download lots of really useful resources about apprenticeships; including entry requirements, pay and where to go to find an apprenticeship.

As an apprentice you’ll: