Mark Anderson is a Careers Adviser at Gordon’s School in Woking. He has used Inspiring the Future as a resource many times to invite volunteers from the world of work to speak to the students.
What activities has Gordon’s School invited Inspiring the Future volunteers to support with?
The school’s fortnightly career industry talks always involve a guest speaker who talks to students about their career, but they have also used the system to arrange careers and assembly talks.
Why do they use Inspiring the Future?
Mark feels that the knowledge that young people have about the range of careers that exist is very limited. By inviting volunteers from a range of careers and industries in to speak to students “the more the students are exposed to different careers”. This allows them to “make better decisions about their next steps” because “the more well informed they are about what’s out there and they can then”.
Have the students enjoyed the events?
Yes – “feedback has generally been good about our events and some pupils have made serious career decisions as a result of meaningful contact with one of our visiting speakers.”
Kathryn, a student in year 13 even “passed on details of a recent speaker from the fashion industry to my sister and as a result she has just started work experience with them!”.
What has been the legacy of the events in Gordon’s School?
The events at Gordon’s School have had a long lasting impact – “many pupils have arranged work placements, chosen a degree or an apprenticeship as a result of a visiting speaker.”
If you would like to organise similar events for your school sign up at the top of the page to start inviting volunteers, or contact us at enquiries@inspiringthefuture.org.