Work Experience
Asdan Certificate of Personal Effectiveness (CoPE)
All students undertake a one week Work Experience (WEX) placement in the summer term of Year 10. Students are encouraged to organise their own placements but, where this is not possible, the school WRL team will obtain a placement using Webview – an electronic data base of employers and placement availability. In 2007 75% of Y10 students organised their own placement in a total of 108 different work places.
The school employs the services of Trident, based at Seymour House, Plymouth. They assist the school in carrying out health and safety checks on each placement and looking for suitable placements for some students.
Trident is an established educational charity that has existed for 30 years to help young people aged 14-25 prepare for life beyond the classroom. Their aims are to enable young people to :
- Improve their employability and enterprise skills;
- Help them develop as individuals; and
- Show them the value of contribution to society and show society the importance of their contribution and continued participation.
Why work experience?
Work experience is an important part of education for employability which allows students to learn about the world of work in a 'real life' working situation. It is intended to give students an experience of working life and the key skills needed in the workplace rather than a chance to try out an occupation they may want to follow. The choice of placement is made to benefit a student's education, rather than for job sampling or recruitment purposes. It is not encouraged to use companies where a student already has a part-time job or will be working with close family or friends. All students, from those taking the fewest examinations to those who will take degrees, need real knowledge of the world of work.
Students from Year 10 participated in a wide range of work experience in May 2008. Photos and a full list of placements will follow.
