Careers Information and Support

WHO IS INVOLVED?

The Careers Team is :

Mr Morgan (Assistant Headteacher - Personal Development, Careers Leader)

Mrs Howard (Director of Transition and Progression)

Miss Hyde (Director of 6th Form, oversee 6th Form Careers and Transition)

Mr Duffy (Primary)

Mrs Brown (Secondary - PA)

 

Our Careers Link Governor is Reverend Paul Worledge.

Our Enterprise Coordinator is David Fretton (The Education People) and our Enterprise Adviser is Hayley Tyler (Cyberfort Limited),

The team work to plan and deliver a Careers programme, which includes advice for pupils, parents and staff as well as employer engagement and support.  Pupils are also supported in their “Career Planning” by Chris Targett and Becky Towner.  Both are independent and impartial Career Development Professionals employed by CXK.Ltd (www.cxk.org). We also receive support from the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) and have an Enterprise Adviser and Enterprise Co-ordinator.  ANY pupil can request a Careers interview - teachers have an online referral form.

The Enterprise Advisor Network (EAN) is supported by KCC and CEC, bringing employers and schools together. We have worked together during the past year to develop a strategy and plan for the careers provision at St George’s. We utilise tools such as ‘Compass’ to measure our progress towards achieving the Gatsby Benchmarks (see below).

If you have any queries or would like to more about our Careers Programme, please contact either Mr Morgan (davidmorgan@st-georgescofe-thanet.kent.sch.uk) or Mrs Howard (lucyhoward@st-georgescofe-thanet.kent.sch.uk )

The government has mandatory guidance for schools which are called the Gatsby benchmarks:

The 8 Gatsby benchmarks of Good Career Guidance

1. A stable careers programme
2. Learning from career and labour market information
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil
4. Linking curriculum learning to careers
5. Encounters with employers and employees
6. Experiences of workplaces
7. Encounters with further and higher education
8. Personal guidance

We want:

• all of our pupils to understand the full range of opportunities available to them, to learn from employers about work and the skills that are valued in the workplace and to have first-hand experience of the workplace;
• all pupils to get an excellent programme of advice and guidance that is delivered by individuals with the right skills and experience;
• all pupils to get support tailored to their circumstances, with access to face-to-face advice.
• all pupils to get the information they need to understand the job and career opportunities available, and how their knowledge and skills can help them in considering suitable careers.

We evaluate our Careers Programme annually and complete a Compass+ assessment in terms 2, 4 and 6 of each year.  Our review of the programme involves surveys completed by pupils, parents, staff and visitors.

Our Careers Programme is constantly evolving, in order to provide pupils with information and inspiration. The document below is the current plan for 2024/5, but may certain aspects may change.

 

See HERE

Labour Market Information (LMI) can provide us with insights into different jobs and opportunities, telling us what is available now or predicted to be in the future. It can be gathered from a wide array of sources from websites run by Government funded organisations, through to adverts for job vacancies in local papers and online. Even anecdotal sources such as conversations with friends and family can give us information on who maybe recruiting. Each source can provide us with information on the labour market.

Turning it into intelligence, however, is key. To do that it is important to ask yourself, How was the information gathered, when, by whom and for what purpose? This will affect what the data is attempting to prove (if biased) or what it may mean for you and your career decisions.

For example: If the data was collected five years ago? How reliable is it? (not very) However, if the data was collected last week it is likely to be more reliable. 

Here is a link to Kent Labour Market Information

 

BUZZ QUIZ

Explore different roles and search by subject areas to find out where your choices could take you. Complete the personality quiz called “The Buzz Quiz” to see if your personality is a good fit with different occupations. This is useful for some students but not the only way to decide on your future choices.

 

16 PERSONALITIES 

Take this personality quiz to see how your character may link to your future career aspirations. It's suitable for some pupils but not all.

Click here

 

KENT CHOICES :  Information on all Post 16 options and routes. Application and support platform for Post-16 studying. We will provide all year 11 students with a password and usernames before they complete year 10 and show you how to log on the first time.

NATIONAL CAREERS SERVICE : For information about specific career interests. Search what a job involves by using the job profile box.

DISCOVER UNI : Thinking about university? Take a look at some information

NOT GOING TO UNI : This site can help school leavers with searching different opportunities available to them.

APPRENTICESHIPS : For apprenticeship vacancies you can research Thanet, or further afield, or sign up to create an account to make applications

PLANIT : A to Z information about different Careers

Pupil Feedback re CXK Careers Advice 2024

 

• Found it all very useful helped my confidence for my future job opportunities etc (Year 13)
  The advisor was very friendly and helpful and I would like to make this known (Year 13)
• BT: Felt a 4 then after conversation felt an 8 (Year 11)
• BT: Found the career talk was very helpful and helped me find myself more motivated towards my grades (Year 11)
• It was very good and very helpful (Year 9)
• Having this talk helped me out a lot and has encouraged me to try and do better (Year 10)
• The one-to-one session, I found, was a lot more useful than the group sessions. (Year 9)
• At the start I wasn’t feeling a great understanding of my path but Becky has helped feel more positive and have a greater understanding of what path I need to take and what steps I need to take in the future to do so. She has been a great help to me today and I appreciate her time and service she has given me. (Year 11)
• Great help on ideas to figure out where I should be at and what pathways I should exploit or look into. (Year 12)
• Very helpful as i was shown many different websites to use to help me find places after school and where to do research to help myself out (Year 12)
• Made me feel more confident (Year 11)
• Gained more motivation for the future and how to improve my self -confidence when it comes to my autism. (Year 11)

For year 7 and 8 we recommend exploring Unifrog.  ANY pupil can request a Careers interview - teachers have an online referral form.

Also, there are tests known as Psychometric Tests that can be used to identify your strengths, aptitudes and unlock your potential. They help you find out about your personality.   Mr Targett explains Psychometric Assessments :

https://www.facebook.com/StGeorgesBroadstairs/videos/746490299424127/

In year 7, students have visits from the DWP who do 'What are My Skills' sessions with all year 7 maths classes during terms 4 to 6.

In year 8, students have visits from the DWP who do 'My Digital Footprint' sessions with all year 8 maths classes during terms 4 to 6.

In year 9 you will be choosing your options for year 10. Look below for your link.

 

Employability Skills

These are many skills that future employers will be looking for. We concentrate on 6 :

• Aiming High
• Communicating (speaking and listening)
• Problem solving
• Teamwork
• Staying positive
• Creativity

 

Do you have any evidence of these skills???

Year 9 pupils chose their options on 27th February 2025.

All St George's pupils do Maths, English Language and Literature, 3 Sciences and RE. They then pick 2 more subjects from those listed below.

Pupils who are really struggling with their options choices can be seen by our independent careers advisors. Just ask Mr Morgan, your Form Tutor or your Year Team.  Also see the CXK Blog HERE .

You can email us directly at careers@st-georgescofe-thanet.kent.sch.uk

 

Thinking about what subjects to take in your options? A video from our Careers Advisor Mr Targett that may help - concentrating on different subjects.

 

Year 10 have access to Unifrog, which is a very useful tool for pupils.

Year 10 Work Experience week this year is 7th to 11^th July 2025. There are strict deadlines that we need to stick to when organising work placements, and we will be contacting year 10 parents regularly to keep them updated. If you were arranging your own work placement, the deadline for letting us know is Friday, 6th December 2024.

Between term 4 and term 6, the DWP will be visiting maths lessons to provide support with CVs / Personal Statements. This prepares year 10s for their Kent Choices in year 11.

ANY pupil can request a Careers interview - teachers have an online referral form.

ORGANISING OWN WORK EXPERIENCE PLACEMENT

WORK EXPERIENCE LETTER - SEPTEMBER 2024

WORK EXPERIENCE LETTER - MAY 2025

WORK EXPERIENCE ASSEMBLY JUNE 2024 (OLD)

WORK EXPERIENCE DIARY (OLD)

 

Year 10 Move Forward: what happens when you have a Careers Guidance Session?

CAREER GUIDANCE FOR YOUNG PEOPLE: SUPPORTING YOUR NEXT STEPS (CXK.ORG) 

Future Options HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/WATCH/?V=257286395558401

The Application HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/WATCH/?V=599664057630858

Year 10 Advice for Open Days HTTPS://WWW.FACEBOOK.COM/WATCH/?V=308469903640990

These videos are also to be found on our school Instagram page.

 

KENT CHOICES - USE THIS POWERPOINT PRESENTATION TO HELP :

Kent Choices - how to log in

 

Another very good website is https://successatschool.org/careerzones This is all about the different jobs you can do, what to study and how to get there, whether you're planning to leave school or heading to college or uni. There are helpful interviews, advice and links to set you on the right pathway.

Any issues, email careers@st-georgescofe-thanet.kent.sch.uk 

All of our Year 11 should have completed a Moving Forwards form which allows us to organise their Careers Interviews.  Information on this can be found in the Year 10 section on THIS page.

Mr Morgan has a number of Careers books that you are welcome to borrow.  This includes The Good University Guide, the Guide to Not Going to University, HEAP 2023 and many prospectuses. Pupils need to be able to write a Personal Statement and navigate through application sites such as Kent Choices.

 

 

See also our section the 6th Form page for links about Apprenticeships and other pathways. We strongly recommend that pupils make use of their Unifrog accounts.

https://www.kent.gov.uk/education-and-children/college-sixth-form-employment-and-training

https://virtualschool.lea.kent.sch.uk/post16/options-at-16-and-beyond/

 

For Kent Choices, the website pupils should use is as follows:  https://www.kentprospectus.co.uk/login/

How to write a Personal Statement for 6th Forms

Personal Statement Examples

If you need help with anything to do with Kent Choices, then email careers@st-georgescofe-thanet.kent.sch.uk

Interview Skills

Interviews are something that everyone finds challenging, whether you are going for your first interview, or whether you have taken part in lots of interviews before. It is so important that you have the opportunity to practise for your first interview, so that you feel more confident and prepared to answer whatever questions you have to face.

One thing to remember: an interview is a two-way process. It is a chance for you to “show-off”, to tell the employer / school /  college / university why they need you to get into their organisation. It is also, though, the opportunity for them to see whether you “fit” into their organisation.

 

These are the types of questions that you might get asked at an interview and with ideas on how you might respond to those questions. Have a go at preparing some answers to these questions.

 

What are your interests outside of school?	Make sure you are able to talk for a minute or so about something you do in your spare time.   The interviewer wants to know that you are a well-rounded person with a life outside school!
What are your strengths?	Before you go to the interview, it is a good idea to make a list of the qualities that you think the employer or educational establishment would want from someone.   Your answers will tell the interviewer whether you have an understanding of the type of person needed to do the course/job
What are your weaknesses?	Do you admit to any? One answer could be that you do have some but none that would stop you doing a good job. Another answer could be phrased positively – “sometimes over-enthusiastic” or “a bit of a perfectionist”   Reassure the interviewer that there are no serious areas of concern and that you will be able to do the course/job.
Can you tell me about a time when you had to work as part of a team?	How do you relate to other people? Are you a leader? Have you got ideas? Can you motivate others? Before you go to the interview, think about a project that you have been involved with which required teamwork. Tell the interviewer what the team goal was, what part you played in helping the team to achieve that goal and how successful you were.   The question is designed to help the interviewer find out what sort of a person you are.
What accomplishments /achievements have given you the greatest satisfaction/ are you most proud of?	Before you go to the interview think of an achievement/accomplishment of which you are proud. It does not necessarily have to be connected with school or work.   Employers/Sixth Forms & Colleges all want people who are able to accomplish projects successfully
Do you have or have you held any positions of responsibility whilst at school?	Before you go to interview, make a note of any positions of responsibility you hold, if necessary, it is okay to take some notes into the interview to remind you.
What made you choose the subjects you are currently studying?	Before you go to interview make sure you know exactly what subjects you are studying and be prepared to explain why you choose them.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years’ time?	The answer to this question needs to be one that will reassure the interviewer that you are keen to learn and to use the skills you acquire within the company or during your time at Sixth Form or College. Your answer should include points such as ‘I would hope to have gained experience/new skills/qualifications” … “I would be taking on more responsibility”. You need to make clear that you want progression within the company (if applying for the apprenticeship). Do not say that you will have moved on elsewhere unless you are applying for a Sixth Form or College place.

 

It is all very well to prepare answers to the questions, rehearse them and know what you are going to say, but it is totally different when you are actually in the interview situation with an employer/someone sitting opposite you, that you’ve never met before, who is asking these questions individually.