Careers Advice

Leader of Careers Information, Advice and Guidance - Ms R Griffiths

Email: school@wadedeacon.co.uk

Tel: 0151 423 2721

Assistant Vice Principal - Mrs H Alexander

Provider Access Statement policy 2025-2026

Careers Policy 2025-2026

Careers Education at Wade Deacon High School

Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) is an essential part of the support we offer to students at Wade Deacon High School. Effective careers helps to prepare our young people for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of life and helps them to make informed decisions about their future steps. The careers curriculum, as part of students’ wider Personal Development, is sequenced to ensure progression through activities that are appropriate to students’ age, stage of learning and context. At Wade Deacon we are committed to ensuring all pupils secure appropriate post-16 provision and leave us equipped to meet their full potential.

In order to achieve this purpose, the objectives for the careers programme are as follows:

Helping students to understand the changing world of work
Facilitating meaningful encounters with employers for all students
Supporting the transition to post-16 education, employment or training
Enabling students to develop the research skills to find out about opportunities
Helping students to develop the skills, attitudes and qualities ready for the world of work
Inspiring participation in continued learning, including further and higher education and apprenticeships
Supporting inclusion, challenging stereotyping and promoting equality of opportunity
Contributing to strategies for raising achievement, particularly by increasing motivation.

The programme includes:

The Careers curriculum is a key element of the school’s wider Personal Development curriculum and addresses the following topics:

Careers pathways
Educational pathways
The labour market (local, regional, national and international)
The nature of work in the 21st Century
Applications and employability
Experience of the workplace
Challenges in the workplace
Professional bodies and Trades Unions
Health and Safety in the workplace
Financial literacy
Economic literacy

From Year 7, students’ knowledge and understanding of careers is supported through a blend of discrete and cross-curricular learning activities, including Personal Development lessons and extended ‘Focus Mornings’, a structured programme of form-time activities and assemblies led by senior staff and selected external speakers. Additionally, all subjects actively promote relevant careers information and enrichment opportunities, allowing students to experience diverse provision. Within lessons, teachers use the context of work to develop the knowledge, skills and understanding that will be useful in future workplace. Furthermore, subject teachers inform students about how their learning in the classroom relates to the world of work and future careers.

During Year 9, students are supported through the GCSE Options process, receiving personalised guidance about subject choices which helps them to access an appropriate and ambitious Key Stage 4 curriculum.

In Year 10 all students complete a two-week work experience placement, ideally in a field that they wish to pursue their future career. Work experience provides our students with a taste of the world of work, by experiencing interviews, applications, time keeping, health and safety and much more. The purpose of work experience for the student is to:

Develop their understanding of the world of work
Inform decisions about potential careers and occupations
Build their confidence and self-esteem

In Year 11 students have further opportunities to meet employers, apprenticeship providers and further and higher education institutions from across the borough and the region.Students are able to engage one-to-one through events such as an annual Careers Fair to discover new careers, extra-curricular and training opportunities. In addition, Year 11 students are provided with opportunities to attend sample at days at local FE Colleges and each student will have a one-to-one interview with the school’s independent Level 6 qualified careers advisor, who will provide guidance and support in students’ career paths. Interviews are bespoke to each student’s needs, with further guidance and support provided as required.

Post 16 Information – Where next?

Leaving school is an exciting time but it can also be difficult to know what to do next. The following information outlines some of the options available to you:

‘A’ Levels

A-levels are a more advanced qualification that will usually be delivered over 2 years.

Follow the link below for further details regarding A-Level and AS Level courses:

What are A-levels | What A-level subjects should I study? (successatschool.org)

For specific details regarding the courses that you are interested in please contact the local colleges/sixth form providers. Alternatively, you can speak to our careers advisor in school.

Vocational Courses

Vocational qualifications include BTEC’s, NVQ’s and Diploma’s. You will learn in a more practical way and are designed to meet industry standards; therefore you will be equipped with the skills and knowledge for your chosen career.

Follow the link below for further details regarding vocational qualifications:

What are vocational qualifications? | Vocational subjects (successatschool.org)

Apprenticeships

An apprenticeship is a paid job with offers hands-on work experience with training. Although most time will be spent at your workplace, you will spend time at a local college or training company and build your knowledge and qualifications.

Follow the link below for further details regarding apprenticeships:

https://www.gov.uk/topic/further-education-skills/apprenticeships

T-levels

T-levels are a new type of qualification that combines classroom learning with “on- the job” training. They have been developed to offer an alternative to A-Levels and will provide students with a clear route to future employment, as well as progress to Further Education.

Follow the link below for further details regarding T-levels:

What Are T-levels? | Success At School

Where can I study?

It is important that you take some time to explore what each institution can offer and how this will help you in your next steps in your education. We strongly recommend that you visit as many institutions as possible to get a ‘feel’ for the courses, environment, and enrichment activities they have on offer.

For further information or advice regarding your post 16 options you can speak to Ms Griffiths or the school careers adviser.

Useful websites

FE colleges:

Cronton College

https://www.riversidecollege.ac.uk/

https://utcw.co.uk/

Home (sthelens.ac.uk)

https://www.priestley.ac.uk/

https://www.wvr.ac.uk/

Welcome to UTCW - UTC Warrington

Carmel College

Apprenticeships: