Careers

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At St Edmund Campion, our mission statement, ‘Achieving Together through Christ’ is lived out through our five core principles which permeate every aspect of life at Campion and are integral to our commitment to high-quality careers education.

These core principles are key to careers education.

  • Spirituality, Dignity and Moral Purpose
  • A Culture of Excellence and Professionalism
  • Breadth of Knowledge and Opportunity
  • Relentless Ambition and High Expectations
  • No Child Left Behind

Intent

We are passionate about supporting and preparing students for their next steps.Whether that be through offering high-quality guidance or career experiences, we want students to feel empowered and well-informed about the multitude of opportunities available to them.

We believe that a breadth of subject and careers knowledge gives our pupils a superb starting point in life, ensuring no child is left behind.  We ensure pupils are provided with impartial guidance and advice on further education, training or employment across all key stages and work with an array of employers and education providers. We want our pupils to find their purpose in life and be happy and fulfilled in what they do, becoming good role models for future generations. We inspire pupils to create a better world which mirrors the values of Jesus Christ and want our pupils to go out into the world and act with moral purpose.

Our commitment to high-quality lessons in all lessons is also evident through our careers programme. We provide each pupil with the breadth of knowledge, range of skills, personal and spiritual development so that they can be successful in their next steps, whether that be at university or in the career of their choice.

Our PSHE programme supports our careers delivery and our commitment to our VESPAR programme (Vision, Effort, Systems, Practice, Attitude and Resilience) highlights the importance we give to skills, attitudes and metacognition.

Our Careers Coordinator is Mrs L. Jackson; if you have any queries about careers, higher education or virtual work experience please email: jacksonl@stedcamp.bham.sch.uk or telephone 0121 464 7700

The Senior Leader with the responsibilty for careers is Mrs J. Quoroll.

The Governor with responsibility for careers is Mrs Sara Pearson.

Implementation

Careers Education, Information and Guidance is delivered through our PSHE programme, Super Learner Days and subject specific opportunities.  We invite a range of speakers and providers to meet with our pupils. Furthermore, we work closely with local companies and provide opportunities for different experiences of work throughout our careers learning journey.  We strive to achieve the Gatsby Benchmarks and these shape our commitment to careers education.

  1. A stable career programme
  2. Learning from careers and labour market information
  3. Addressing the needs of each student
  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
1. A Stable Careers Programme
Every school and college should have embedded programme of career education and guidance that is known and understood by pupils, parents, teachers and employers.
2. Learning from Career and Labour Market Information
Every pupil, and their parents should have access to good-quality information about future study options and labour market opportunities. They will need the support of an informed adviser to make best use of available information.
3. Addressing the Needs of Each Pupil
Pupils have different career guidance needs at different stages. Opportunities for advice and support need to be tailored to the needs of each pupil. A school’s career programme should embed equality and diversity considerations throughout.
4. Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers
All teachers should link curriculum learning to careers. For example, STEM subject teachers should highlight the relevance of STEM subjects for a wide range of future career paths.
5. Encounters with Employers and Employees
Every pupil should have multiple opportunities to learn from employers about work, employment and the skills that are valued in the workplace. This can be through a range of activities including visiting speakers, mentoring and enterprise schemes.
6. Experiences of Workplaces
Every pupil should have first-hand experiences of the workplace through work visits, work shadowing and/or work experience to help their exploration of career opportunities, and expand their networks.
7. Encounters with Further and Higher Education
All pupils should understand the full range of learning opportunities that are available to them. This includes both academic and vocational routes and learning in schools, colleges, universities and in the workplace.
8. Personal Guidance
Every pupil should have opportunities to guidance interviews with a career adviser, who could be internal (a member of school staff) or external, provided they are trained to an appropriate level. These should be available whenever significant study or career choices are being made. They should be expected for all pupils but should be timed to meet their individual needs.
The table below summarises some of the ways our careers programme meets the Gatsby Benchmarks.

Best practice evidence on how we are working towards the Gatsby Benchmarks:

  1. Careers is built into our PSHE lessons and is integral to our exciting and informative Super Learner Days.  Our website has been created to ensure that students are informed and able to access helpful and up-to-date advice.
  2. Careers and Labour Market Information is available via our school website and is shared with pupils via assemblies, and parents through our newsletter.
  3. Pupils are supported by our Independent Careers Advisor and our Careers and SEND Team.  All pupils have access to Unifrog years 7-13 and Pathways CTM years 9-13.
  4. STEM events through our Super Learner Day Programme, and we run a wide variety of career visits for pupils to engage with.  We work closely with Aim Higher and other subject organisations.  Subject leaders plan key points in the year to promote careers via their subjects
  5. We invite a range of employers in to speak with our pupils and offer a range of visits so that pupils can interact with employers and employees. We encourage, where possible, school trips to have a planned encounter with an employer. Year 11 and Year 12 also take part in our annual  Mock Interview Day with employers and receive bespoke feedback on their performance.
  6. We offer different experiences of the workplace through various trips, opportunities and virtual events. Our Year 9 pupils take part in a day with the Medical Mavericks team and Year 10 and Year 12 pupils also complete Work Experience.
  7. We work with a wide range of further and higher education providers and a wide range of universities always attend our Post 16 Open Evening.  We have strong links with the Aimhigher and the Aimhigher Plus Team.  Our Key Stage 3, 4 and 5 pupils visit higher and further education providers as part of our careers programme.
  8. We employ an Independent Careers Advisor who supports our pupils throughout the year and attends KS4 parents’ evenings and Post 16 Open Evening.

If you would like to share any feedback on our school careers programme, book a careers appointment for your son/daughter, or feel you could contribute to our programme please email:jacksonl@stedcamp.bham.sch.uk

Curriculum Overview

Useful links

Birmingham Careers Service

National Careers Service

First Careers