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Inspire - the Education Business Partnership for Hackney's Ready for Work programme


		11-16 schools

		6th form schools

		Colleges

Summary

The Ready for Work programme is part of the education business partnership's contribution to the key stage 4 engagement programme in Hackney. The programme was established by the Ready for Work team from Inspire, the education business partnership for Hackney. The Ready for Work team built strong working relationship with local schools, employers and Connexions as partners in the delivery of a strong work-focused component for young people studying vocational programmes at key stage 4.

Introduction and background

The Ready for Work programme aims to provide students with:

an increased understanding of the world of work and the expectations of employers
increased confidence, motivation, personal effectiveness, reliability and resourcefulness
enhanced employability skills, including communication, team working, problem solving and enterprise skills
practical experience of the workplace, including opportunities to demonstrate commitment, responsibility, a positive attitude and other work-related skills

The Ready for Work programme involves two main elements:

a Ready for Work course, and
an extended work placement

The Ready for Work course takes six days and covers the aptitudes, attitudes and skills required for the world of work, such as the skills for searching and applying for jobs, including activities in schools and in workplaces. Following the course, students undertake work placements to put the skills developed on the course into practice in a real work setting related to their vocational learning programme. These placements take one day per week, with short 'taster' placements for four weeks, through to extended placements for 30 weeks for students who demonstrate high levels commitment.

All students on the programme work towards an OCR Certificate in Preparation for Employment at a suitable level. The team from Inspire monitor progress throughout the placements with regular contact between learners and employers, addressing any issues in partnership with the relevant school. Students also have access to a Connexions personal assistant who can provide guidance, group work, workshops and continued progression support.

The first phase of the programme involved more than 50 students from two different schools.

Approach

The Ready for Work team have built strong working relationship with local schools, employers and Connexions as partners in the delivery of the programme, establishing effective monitoring procedures and regular progress meetings with delivery partners.

The responsibilities of Ready to Work team and the schools in the programme are outlined in an 'agreement' to help ensure the programme is delivered successfully. Before any students start on this programme, the Ready for Work team hold meetings with schools, with an assembly to speak to all students about the programme, and briefing meetings for parents. The team have also attended parents' evenings to enlist the support of parents or guardians of students on the programme.

The first contact between the Ready for Work team and the students interested in the programme are informal meetings to find out about their skills, interests, motivations and expectations and provide an opportunity for them to ask questions. This pre-programme interview emphasises the two-way nature of the programme and helps provide a positive start for students on this programme.

An 'agreement' between the Ready for Work team and students on the programme sets out the responsibilities, commitments and expectations of the team and the student. By setting out the required level of attendance for the work placement at the start of the programme, the student knows that placement will be terminated if attendance falls below this level. This approach also ensures that employers are likely to continue to provide placements for other students in the future.

The six day course is designed to provide an introduction to the programme and motivate students. The course provides students with opportunities to speak to people from different workplaces and reflect on the world of work. It involves a range of activities, including non-classroom based activities and visits, and 'hands on' activities, such as enterprise challenges, tower building team challenges and self-reflective collages to help engage all students. The team have reviewed and refined the contents of the course to meet the needs of the full range of students on the programme. It is important the students can access the materials used for the course, and worksheets have been adapted to make sure they are attractive and engaging to assist students to complete these units of the qualification.

This course also includes opportunities for students to find out about the work of work and meet people and employees from a range of workplaces, giving more meaning to their school experience as a basis for progression into further study or employment. Students are able to talk to people about how they reached their current position, which provides students with inspiration and motivation to consider pathways that these students may not have previous considered.

Throughout the work placements, the team have regular contact with students and employers to monitor progress, and take action to address poor behaviour and poor levels of attendance with the help of learning support mentors from each school. Although the Ready for Work team finds suitable work placements, students are encouraged and supported to find their own work placements, giving students more responsibility and enabling them to pursue specific areas of interest.

Signs of success

Evaluating the Ready to Work programme has shown many students demonstrate great committment to the programme, and employer feedback for those students on placements is very positive.

Students considered to be disruptive in their other classes are engaged and enthused by the Ready to Work course and their work placements. Students respond positively to the programme, showing clear development in work-related skills, particularly for students who lacked awareness of work-related skills, but were willing to learn about them.

Students from the programme are considering a variety of employment routes as a result of successful work placements :

‘I never thought of this as an option, I never knew this type of job existed, but it’s brilliant.’

The Ready for Work programme successfully delivers to students who are at risk of disengagement and students who are not fully engaged with the mainstream curriculum. Extending this programme to students at risk of expulsion or who are severely disengaged would require:

a higher level of support
tailoring to individual needs
further mentoring and one-to-one support
increased time for personal development
alternatives to work placements