National Careers Week (7th – 12th March 2022) was created to promote careers guidance across the UK. On Friday 11th March 2022, MFC Foundation celebrated #NCW2022 in style, with 266 students from several primary schools within the Tees Valley area and 9 different local businesses/organisations attending MFC Foundation’s first ever Primary Careers Fair.
The inspiring event was hosted at the Riverside Stadium and schools who attended were several of those that have participated in MFC Foundation’s Careers and Enterprise programme, funded by the Tees Valley Combined Authority as part of the Primary Careers Pilot. The 266 students who attended the event were from the following schools: Bankfields Primary School, Harewood Primary School, Kirklevington Primary School, Lingdale Primary School, Reid Street Primary School and Skelton Primary School.
The 9 local organisations who kindly gave up their time to support the event were AM Recruitment, Bespoke Financial, Beyond Housing, Cleveland Fire Brigade, Cleveland Police, Middlesbrough College, Middlesbrough Football Club, Rosedene Nurseries and Teesside University.
Students were put to task on arrival at the Riverside Stadium with a variety of Careers and Enterprise group activities to start the day such as quizzes, word searches and group activities. This was followed by the main part of the day where students were given the chance to speak directly with each of the employers in attendance. These employers, representing a wide range of fields and industries, had prepared talks, activities and demonstrations to educate the students about their own job roles, the variety of jobs within their workplace and to offer some real insight into what a career within their organisation looks like. The employers kindly also prepared some giveaways and prizes for the students to take away with them.
‘The event was really well organised and inspiring. The children really enjoyed learning about the wide range of paths available to them once they finish school. We had an interesting discussion back at school about their new perspectives on different careers, universities and apprenticeships.’ – KS2 Teacher, Kirklevington Primary School
The 266 students were given this opportunity as a reward for their brilliant effort and engagement with the Careers and Enterprise sessions that have been delivered within their schools over the last few months. Students did themselves and their schools proud by asking some brilliant questions to the employers throughout the day, making the most of this opportunity to learn from the individual career experiences of those within local workplaces. Many of the employers commented on how impressed they were with the level of enthusiasm students had to learn about their workplace, but also with the wide range of career aspirations that were shared by the students throughout the day.
MFC Foundation would like to say thank you to all students who attended for making the day such a success. MFC Foundation would also like to thank the teachers who allowed the event to run smoothly and of course the local organisations who gave up their time to share their invaluable experience with the next generation. School teachers stated that students left the day feeling inspired and excited for their future career journeys.
MFC Foundation’s Careers and Enterprise programme provides students with a core programme of learning, focusing on careers and enterprise topics. In addition to the face-to-face programme, MFC Foundation have also been creating online resources for Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2 students, these are available to all primary schools within the Tees Valley area and can be accessed here. During the period of January – April 2022, the key topic areas for these resources were ‘Local Labour Market’, with new topics being added regularly and proving extremely beneficial to many schools.
The programme connects students with enriching real-life learning experiences such as workplace visits and meaningful encounters with local businesses. Aiming to enhance the life, career and employment chances of every child in the Tees Valley. If you are a local business who would like to host a visit to your workplace, or a school who would like to learn more about the MFC Foundation Careers and Enterprise programme, then please contact daniel.wiseman@mfcfoundation.co.uk.
