Careers and Work Related Learning :

Introduction

Intent

At Woodford County High School, we want our students to be empowered individuals, leaving the school ready for their post 18 education choice and the world of work, determined to overcome any challenges and confident in their career paths, whatever that may be.

We want our students to aspire without limits, and meet challenges with confidence and determination. We also want our students to their own journeys through school, ready for the world of work with strong skill sets and awareness of how their skills may apply in the world of work.

As part of their careers curriculum, we strive to provide our students from Year 7 to Year 13 with multiple opportunities to develop a broad career awareness, access to up-to-date labour market information and knowledge of the key skills that will be required in the world of work. These can be both subject-specific through careers-based lessons or on a broad scale in PSHCE.

We also intend to provide Key Stage 4 & 5 information of the various progression routes, knowing that one does not fit all, and thus promoting opportunities such as apprenticeships and vocational routes, not just routes into higher education. By March of the academic year, we intend to have had meetings with all Year 9 and Year 11 students regarding their progression to the next Key Stage.

We are continuously reviewing our careers curriculum and policies to ensure that any disadvantaged students are supported and continue to thrive.

Implementation

At Woodford County, we use the Gatsby benchmarks to enhance our careers provision and ensure careers and our students futures are the foundation of our students’ future successes. All departments deliver high quality career-based lessons to give students insights into the where the subject could take them.  Careers is a key part of our PSHCE curriculum, having been adapted from the Unifrog model so the students progress through different elements of careers education, but nonetheless aspiring our high-achieving students.

Our school to offers careers education to each year group, allowing them to set high ambitions and achieve their full potential, whilst persevering against any setbacks or disadvantages. It also allows them to reflect on their meaning of success, to allow them to become happy and productive citizens. This would be provided for Key Stage 3 & 4 through the PSHCE content (for a month, once a year for each year group), regular access to Unifrog for all students, career fairs and talks (including alumni as volunteers). For Key Stage 5, they also have access to the career fairs and talks, as well as personalised support with their tutors in their post 18 applications, mock interviews, an MMI event, and the UCAS fortnight event, with insights into a variety of different sectors and progression routes.

For example, in Year 7 the students work on an entrepreneur project, where they are working as a team to put together a pitch for a charity event at Woodford County to raise money for Haven house. In Year 8, the students learn more about the changing world of work, how one may apply for a job, as well as reflect on their key skills such as problem-solving and communication. For further information on the curriculum, please consult the following document.

Students in Key Stage 4 & 5 are given opportunities to have an insight into a workplace, further education options and work experience through Take Your Child to Work Day, Year 11 work experience fortnight and UCAS discovery trip at the Excel Centre.

All Year 9 & 11 students are provided with guidance into their choices for their progression into the next stage, through interviews, subject talks and taster days. All Year 11 students will have an interview with an independent careers’ guidance counsellor from the Shaw Trust to discuss their options and set up a plan to achieve their full potential in their GCSEs and make informed choices for their futures. Whilst we are aware that our cohort of students are high achieving, we recognise that this does not guarantee their success in school and the world of work, with students needing support for a variety of different reasons. We provide personalised and tailored guidance to ensure they continue to be aspirational, ambitious and successful, no matter what their disadvantage may be.

We maintain links with outside networks to seek further support with any disadvantaged students and constantly improve our careers delivery, through the CDI, Careers Hub East and Redbridge Connexions. We also maintain links with work experience providers, so they are able to take on another Woodford student in the following year.

Impact

We are extremely proud that in 2023/24, all of our Year 11 students went on to post-16 education. Our cohort this academic year (2024/5) achieved exceptional grades in both GCSEs and A Levels with the best results in the borough, 157 of our Year 13 students in 2025 earning a place at university, 21 of them being Medicine, 14 Law (and a large number of them attending universities such as Warwick UCL, King’s College London, Queen Mary and City St George’s). We also had a number of students who successfully took their place at an Oxbridge University.

All students, including those who start later in the school year, are set up with a Unifrog account and have lessons dedicated to it once a year. They are frequently encouraged to explore the website, especially during the careers week in March. Members of staff also contribute to students accounts by updating any interactions they have through or outside of school, whether it is a careers fair or a workshop on sustainability.

The student voice is used often to gather information regarding the impact of the careers curriculum and careers events, which leads to tweaks and improvements. Students have been asked to inform the careers leader on which sectors they need more information on. Students have also responded and given positive feedback on their careers guidance meetings in Year 11, with 9/10 students saying they would recommend it and 100% of students agreeing that the session was helpful. The average score for the careers guidance sessions was 8.9/10.

 

Holly Summers - Careers Co-Ordinator