Published 22 March 2022
Last week, we opened our doors to local employers and further education providers as the school hosted a careers fair for our Y12 & 13 students. The event was supported by a wide range of sectors keen to speak in person to potential future applicants and employees.
Students were able to discuss a wide variety of courses with the University Centre Newbury, Oxford Brookes University and Winchester University. West Berkshire Training Consortium, AWE, Kerridge Commercial Systems and Ernst & Young were all on hand to provide valuable guidance to students who are considering apprenticeships as an option. Whilst Thames Valley Police and The British Army also sent representatives to share information on career paths with the students.
Jack, Year 12, said: “The representatives of the Thames Valley Police gave me a lot of helpful information about the several apprenticeship opportunities provided by them and their first-hand knowledge of the process was hugely helpful.”
St Bart’s Career Leader, Mrs Seward said: “National Careers Week (NCW) is a celebration of careers guidance and resources in education across the UK, helping to support young people leaving education. Whilst our careers programme runs throughout the year, NCW provides a particular focus at an important stage in the academic calendar. This year, we decided to concentrate on local provision, giving students the opportunity to discover all there is on offer in their own community. We are very grateful to all those who gave their time to speak with the students. Around 250 students participated and at least that amount of free pens and pencils were given out!”
Whilst the Careers Fair was a particular highlight, the school also marked the occasion with KS3 and KS4 students. All around the school staff displayed ‘What Does Your Career Path Look Like?’ posters, outlining their previous jobs (sometimes unexpected!) and the skills they themselves have developed during their careers. Throughout the week, the school’s library also offered extra resources and a dedicated space to enable students to explore different types of careers, discover the tools on offer to support career decisions and to identify their own talents and passions.
