News: Shape Your Future is Here!
As schools and colleges know, achieving 100% on all the Gatsby Benchmarks can be challenging. The CEC’s most recent “State of the Nation” report reflects this.
While the picture is improving, there are still significant gaps in Benchmarks being fully achieved. For Benchmark 2 and 4, the national picture states that 45% of organisations have fully achieved Benchmark 2 (Learning from Careers and Labour Market Information) and 38% Benchmark 4 (Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers).
Help is at hand in the form of the “Shape Your Future” publication. Many organisations will be familiar with the resource from the previous version released in 2017.
The aim of “Shape Your Future” is to help young people explore their career routes, options and pathways. It provides accessible regional LMI that can help organisations achieve Gatsby 2. The publication has been revamped and extended. Key changes include an introduction by the Mayor, Dan Jarvis, extended qualifications, skills and applications sections.
The number of work sectors has been expanded to include Health and Social Care (directly written by staff in the sector) and Public Services. There is also a full page for parents and carers, plus signposting for much more information and support.
Some initial feedback about the new version suggests it will prove popular with students, parents, staff and employers:
“I’m always glad to receive the ‘Shape Your Future’ resources, they are excellent and friends in other parts of the country are jealous when I tell them about what we get in Yorkshire.” Leighton Collins, Careers Leader, Firth Park Academy.
“They look great! Really looking forward to sharing these with our students and parents.” Cerise Walters, Thomas Rotherham College.
“It is great that this information is tailored towards our local region – information that isn’t always freely available.” Claire Du Puget, Outwood Academy, Danum.
“We absolutely love this resource. We use them in careers interviews, in group sessions and also as displays in school.” Oakwood school.
You can find the online version here. You will also be able to access materials to help you maximise use of the information with your students. We will add to the materials as they are extended: if any schools or colleges create information they are willing to share we can upload them for everyone to use.
For more information, contact Sonia Hardwick: s.hardwick@shu.ac.uk