Implementation of CEIAG

Implementation of CEIAG

Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) here at Kepier is delivered through a careers education programme in school from years 7-11 and includes careers information, advice and guidance which is offered to students individually from years 7-11, both internally by the Careers Advisor and externally by the local authority careers service for specialist and impartial guidance. The CEIAG curriculum is taught by staff in the Culture and Wellbeing Department.

CEIAG is statutory from year 8 but we begin from year 7 in order to raise aspirations, challenge stereotypes and encourage ALL pupils to consider a wide range of careers. A copy of the statutory guidance October 2018 can be found here: Careers Guidance Schools Guidance

In each Key Stage all students follow a carefully planned CEIAG programme:
Key Stage 3 – most of the careers education takes place during Curriculum for Life (CfL) lessons and is delivered by the staff within this department.
Key Stage 4 – careers education forms a separate module within the Curriculum for Life programme for years 10 and 11.

Staff in school also link curriculum learning to Careers.

Year 7

The focus is on their future plans and aspirations and how the choices they make now can affect their future. Learners are also introduced to the idea of writing CVs; exploring what a CV is and how to write one. They begin to explore the options that are available to them at 14 and post 16 in order to prepare for the decisions they are expected to make at these key points.

Year 8

The focus is on the world of work, looking at employment, unemployment and labour market information to gain a greater understanding of the area in which they live and what is available to them locally and nationally. Using time effectively is discussed as it is a very valuable skill to have for the learners to succeed at school and then continue to use in their adult life in higher education and employment Learners are encouraged to reflect upon their achievements and progress, as well as how to use their time productively to contribute and enhance their CVs.

Year 9

The focus is on self-assessment, career paths and options post 14. They have an options evening followed by classwork designed specifically to aid students in the selection of their options at KS4.

Option choices

These are delivered through Curriculum for Life lessons and coaching time to introduce option choices at 14 and link these choices with possible future progression and employment post-16. Curriculum for Life Department Leader and Careers Advisor appear in assembly so learners are aware of who to go to for help and advice. The CfL teachers continue the work on choices during the weekly lesson and coaches also carry on this work if necessary.

Options Evening

The school’s careers advisor is present at the year 9 options evening to meet any parents who might wish to receive help, guidance and advice for their child. A most able talk is also available for the Year 9 Parents, is also offered with regards to their choices in year 10 and 11.

Year 10

The focus is on what learners have achieved so far, further career exploration and also what they are thinking about doing after year 11. Year 10s get to visit the different local colleges and participate in ‘taster’ sessions to prepare them for making decisions regarding what and where they would like to study.

Parents Evening

At the Year 10 parents’ evening, the careers advisor is in attendance. Local further education institutions such as Durham Sixth Form, New College Durham, City of Sunderland College, and East Durham College, Local training providers such as Seta, Chameleon, Springboard and NAC are also invited to send representatives.

Year 11

The focus is post-16 options and the application process. We look at work and pay, and how both are connected. Learners also receive a careers interview during year 11. CVs are updated and finalised along with a personal; statement which go into a progress file that learners are presented with at a leavers’ assembly

Careers interviews

All Year 11 learners get a careers interview with our careers advisor. Parents are encouraged to get involved by reading action plans on Grofar with their child.

Visits to / from local colleges

During the summer term of Year 10, learners have the opportunity to visit a local college of their choice to help enable to make an informed choice as to where they may like to attend post 16. In the autumn term of Year 11 representatives from the local further education colleges, training providers and Universities are invited into school to speak to the students during the weekly Curriculum for life lesson or during drop down days as a careers fair. At various events where parents will be present, education and training providers are invited when it is relevant.
As a school we also offer visits for learners to experience universities such as Oxford, Cambridge, Durham and Sunderland.

Other Visitors

We do have other visitors come to the academy to speak to the students whenever there is opportunity or demand. Such visitors included the army, the RAF and the navy.

Partner/Employer Contribution to the Careers programme

Parents and Carers

Parental involvement is encouraged at all stages. Parents / Carers are kept up to date with careers related information through letters, newsletters and at open evenings. Parents are also welcome to attend careers interviews and discuss action plans with their child.

A number of opportunities are provided for parents to engage with decisions their child makes with regards to their future, for example, open evenings, consultation evenings and apprentice pop up shops.

Links with the Community, Outside Agencies and Businesses.

Kepier school has a vast bank of links with businesses in the local area and beyond, for example; TRW , Carillion, JTL, BL Hairdressing, Nissan, Sunderland Software City, Army, Navy, RAF, Upstream Communications, Gentoo, Fusion Contact Centre, Sale Cycle and Orange Bus.
We also work closely with all the colleges in the local area including: East College Durham, Durham Sixth Form, City of Sunderland,
Links are created by attending Work Discovery Week including; Nissan, Gentoo, Arriva, Liebherr, TRW, Accenture, Northumbrian Water, Grundfos, SAFC and Sunderland City Council.
Where appropriate, speakers are invited into the school to enhance and enrich the experiences of our learners, and we also have an ongoing partnership agreement with Careerwise and Together for Children.

College and Apprenticeship Applications

Prospectuses and application forms for the most popular local colleges are made available to the learners through the school library, Guidance Officer and the colleges themselves at a careers fair as early as October. The careers adviser is available to help learners complete their forms although many students prefer to complete their applications at home with their parents. There is the opportunity for providers to hold application clinics on a break time where learners can ask questions about existing applications or make new ones.
Learners wishing to apply for apprenticeships or training are notified about how to go about this during their careers interview, but sessions are also available with the careers adviser to help with registering onto the best websites and their applications.

Careers Champions Project

The DfE Statutory Guidance for schools (March 2015) recommended that schools should achieve a CEIAG Quality Award.

This is an extract from the Guidance which says:

67. In developing careers provision for pupils, there are currently three aspects of quality assurance that schools should take into consideration:

• The quality of the school careers programme. The Government recommends that all schools should work towards a Quality Award for careers education, information, advice and guidance as an effective means of carrying out a self-review and evaluation of the school’s programme. The national validation, the Quality in Careers Standard, will assist schools to determine an appropriate Quality Award to pursue.
• The quality of independent careers providers. The recognised national quality standard for information, advice and guidance (IAG) services is the matrix Standard. To achieve the Standard, organisations will need to demonstrate that they provide a high quality and impartial service. Schools can access an online register of organisations accredited to the matrix Standard.
• The quality of careers professionals working with the school. The Career Development Institute has developed a set of professional standards for careers advisers, a register of advisers holding postgraduate qualifications and Guidelines on how advisers can develop their own skills and gain higher qualifications. The main qualifications for careers professionals are the Qualification in Career Guidance (QCG) (which replaced the earlier Diploma in Careers Guidance) and the Level 6 Diploma in Career Guidance and Development. Schools can view a register of careers professionals or search for a career development professional who can deliver a particular service or activity.

Kepier achieved the Gold Award from Inspiring IAG in 2018, and this was reviewed in 2021.

You can read more about the CDI Framwork, the framework that the IAG award is based on, here http://www.thecdi.net/write/CWRE_User_Guide.pdf

For information on our curriculum planning, please see document in CEIAG Useful Docmuents.