Visits for pupils, 12, in bid to demystify workplace

A WEST Yorkshire school has reinvented its work experience programme to ensure pupils as young as 12 understand the skills they will need to succeed in the jobs market.

Work experience has traditionally been something schools provide to 15- and 16-year-olds who might spend a week or two in an office or factory shadowing people in one profession or trade.

However, with youth unemployment at a record high and with an official Government review having questioned the value of a week’s work experience at the end of school, Laisterdyke Business & Enterprise College has created a new way of working which teachers believe is “a radical shift” away from the old model.

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The Bradford secondary school is working with major local employers on a work visits programme aimed at showing young people that the skills they develop at school will benefit them when they leave education.

Instead of waiting until students are in their GCSE year, Laisterdyke is getting pupils aged 12 and 13 to take part in visits to workplaces across the city.

During these trips, the year eight pupils see how different jobs are carried out and be shown the relevance of what they are learning in the classroom.

Laisterdyke’s head of enterprise, Gerard Liston, told the Yorkshire Post the scheme was aimed at “demystifying” the workplace for young people and also inspiring them to work hard in lessons.

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Mr Liston also believes the programme can inspire confidence in Bradford – by showing pupils that there are job opportunities for them on their doorstep – and get pupils to think about their future careers from a young age

Pupils have visited major international names such as Ikea and Audi and big local employers such as Flexiform office furniture manufacturer – based a few hundred yards from the school – and Maharaja Textiles in the centre of Bradford.

Each employer has agreed to help Laisterdyke to show how the skills pupils are learning in the classroom could benefit them in the workplace.

A visit to the new £7m Bradford Audi dealership in Canal Road, saw pupils tour the drive-in service area and car showroom before being given a boardroom presentation.

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The dealership’s head of business, Sean Endeacott, said: “This is the first time we have been involved in a programme like this. We want students to discover what happens behind the scenes, as well as sharing some of the magic of a prestige brand.

“It is important to explain that the employability skills students develop in school really are used day-to-day by our team of staff and underpin the success of our business.

“We want young people to have a positive, but realistic, view about working life and about the many opportunities that exist around Bradford.”

Dorothy Scire, one of the programme co-ordinators and music teacher at Laisterdyke, said: “We have been delighted by the positive response from local employers, particularly during difficult economic times when they could easily have just said no.

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“Developing employability skills equips young people for when they leave school, but it also makes them better and more motivated learners. The world of work is becoming highly competitive for young people, with worrying levels of unemployment.

“Experiences like this open their eyes to a range of possibilities and starts them thinking about choices that will match their skills and interests.”

The programme focuses on 12 skills which young people are developing in school and will need in the workplace.

These include coming up with ideas; solving problems; planning and organising; taking decisions; weighing up the situation; communicating with others; getting things done alone; working within a team; taking the lead; taking risks; responding to change and keeping going when it’s tough.

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Mr Liston said: “It will hopefully demystify the workplace to our students and gets them thinking about why they need to pick up these skills and qualifications in school.

“It also gives them thing to aim for. I am not saying shiny cars are the be all and end all but for example at the Audi garage the manager there was telling the pupils about how he drives home in an A5 Cabriolet at the end of the day and for some of our students it will get them thinking, ‘What do I need to do in order to be able to achieve this myself?’”

The project is part of Laisterdyke Business and Enterprise College’s “silver curriculum” which aims to teach pupils employability skills as soon as they move up from primary school into years seven and eight.