January 2024
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This conference assessed next steps for improving careers guidance for children and young people.
It followed the Education Committee’s Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance report, looking into the delivery of careers guidance within primary and secondary schools, and the Government’s response to their recommendations.
The report highlighted concerns over funding for school careers programmes and upskilling for teachers, and gaps in access to high quality work experience, as well as access to quality careers guidance for disadvantaged students.
Key stakeholders and policymakers discussed the way forward for addressing these issues, including the role of careers provision in increasing employment, generating equal access to opportunities and social mobility, and plugging regional and national skills gaps.
The conference was also timed to follow the publication of Ofsted’s thematic review of careers guidance in England, investigating how school leaders fulfil their duties to provide independent and high quality careers guidance, and looking into the creation of partnerships with employers.
Delegates examined ways in which timely and effective careers guidance can be offered to children and young people, and how the quality of careers guidance can be raised in schools, colleges and non-school youth organisations, and in community settings for young people such as Youth Hubs.
We are pleased to have been able to include keynote sessions with: Luke Bocock, Research Director, National Foundation for Educational Research; Alexander Iles, Head of Careers Strategy and Infrastructure, Department for Education; and John Yarham, Deputy Chief Executive, The Careers and Enterprise Company.
Overall, areas for discussion in the agenda included:
- careers guidance today and into the future: assessing the landscape and provision for young people in England - latest thinking on opportunities for improvement
- school priorities: quality of provision - learning from best practice - upskilling teachers - increasing access to work experience - embedding of careers guidance across the curriculum
- Ofsted’s thematic review: key findings - priorities for improving practice - the role of the regulator
- post-16: tailoring careers guidance to address national and regional skills gaps - preparing the future workforce - building partnerships between FE and employers
- policy: priorities for careers guidance in education
The conference was an opportunity for stakeholders to consider the issues alongside key policy officials who attended from the CMA; Defra; Department for the Economy; Department for the Economy, NI; DfE; DESNZ; DWP; Department of Education, NI; GLD; Home Office; IfATE; LocatED; The Scottish Government; and the Welsh Government, as well as parliamentary pass-holders from both Houses of Parliament.
