Careers Education, Information, Advice and Guidance
Following the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, young people will be faced with a very challenging labour market.
This is supported by clear emerging evidence that young people are being disproportionately impacted through unemployment and a significant reduction in apprenticeship opportunities. World class careers guidance coupled with high impact support, linked to the local economy, is arguably now more critical than ever. The January 2021 Skills for Jobs White Paper further highlights that colleges have a key role in boosting productivity, strengthening communities, and supporting individuals.
AoC is working with The Careers and Enterprise Company to provide resources, webinars and information for the leaders, governors and careers guidance professionals in the FE sector to help support colleges in their careers guidance offer.
Join the College Careers Community. CEC is encouraging colleagues within FE to join a virtual community to share best practice and resources to drive innovation in careers education.
Revised Gatsby Benchmarks
The world has evolved; so have the Gatsby Benchmarks for good career guidance
Since the Gatsby Benchmarks were launched a decade ago careers guidance has improved for millions of young people thanks to the efforts and expertise of schools, colleges and independent training providers (ITPs) across the country.
Evidence shows the benchmarks have had a hugely positive impact on the lives of young people across England.
Recent analysis shows students in institutions achieving all eight benchmarks are 8% less likely to be categorised as NEET (not in education, employment or training) compared to peers in schools with either low or no Gatsby Benchmark activity. The research suggests that this relationship is strongest for those institutions with the most disadvantaged young people, with as much as a 20% reduction in NEET rates.
Schools, colleges and ITPs have consistently fed back how useful the Benchmarks are as a framework for delivering world-class careers guidance.
A lot has changed in the past ten years, with a vast technological revolution, incredible innovation in schools and colleges, seismic shifts in the labour market and new jobs and career pathways that didn’t exist ten years ago.
So now, following almost two years of extensive research and stakeholder engagement, the Gatsby Benchmarks have been updated, to achieve even more impact for young people for the next decade.
Here is a reminder of the eight Gatsby Benchmarks:
- A stable careers programme
- Learning from career and labour market information
- Addressing the needs of each young person
- Linking curriculum learning to careers
- Encounters with employers and employees
- Experiences of workplaces
- Encounters with further and higher education
- Personal guidance
The core of the eight Gatsby Benchmarks remains the same but the changes that have been made are really important. Many of the updates fall under one or more of five key themes:
Careers at the heart of education and leadership
Inclusion and impact for each and every young person
Meaningful and varied encounters and experiences
Focusing on the use of information and data
Engagement of parents and carers
The updated benchmarks, along with details on what updates have been made and why and examples of impressive practice are presented in the Good Career Guidance: The Next Ten Years report on the Gatsby Benchmarks website.
Hot topic webinar series 2024/25 - Promoting effective careers practice (FES Connect)
Further Education and Skills Connect (FES Connect) is a national community for Post 16 careers leaders and practitioners, supporting development and sharing of best practice to ensure every learner is supported to find their next best step.
This hot topics series will be run by The Careers and Enterprise Company in partnership with AoC. Seminars will include specialist guest speakers, breakout sessions to discuss hot topics and opportunities to share best practice.
For further information on the webinar series please click here.
Hot topic two
- Parental engagement findings and sharing best practice
Tuesday 28 January 2025, 10am - 11am
Hot topic three
- Using data to inform careers impact
Tuesday 18 March 2025, 10am - 11am
Hot topic four
- Building an individualised approach for the careers education journey
Tuesday 10 June 2025 - 10am -11am
Careers Leaders Training
Careers Leaders training is making a real difference. The Careers & Enterprise Company offer both a fully funded training option and a free online induction for newly appointed Careers Leaders to help them understand the value of the role and the careers education landscape.
Over 2,000 Careers Leaders have already completed the fully funded training with 82% of Careers Leaders reporting a faster improvement towards achieving the Gatsby Benchmarks*.The training equips Careers Leaders with all the knowledge they need across leadership, management, co-ordination and networking to implement a strategic, whole school/college approach to careers. This year, The Careers & Enterprise Company has partnered with nine high quality training providers to deliver this training.
- Choose from distant, face-to-face or blended learning courses
- Network and make new connections with other Careers Leaders.
- Improve your knowledge of the role and gain access to a qualification (up to level 7)
- All Careers Leaders are eligible to apply for a fully funded training place.
*source: Impact evaluation of Careers Leader Training, 2018-2020
For more information, view the evaluation report.
Career Development Policy Group and the Career Guidance Guarantee
The Career Development Policy Group (CDGP) brings together a range of organisations, including the Association of Colleges, who believe that it is essential that citizens have an opportunity to access support in their careers. The group works with the Government and other stakeholders to develop policies and initiatives that support career development.
The CDPG initially launched the Career Guidance Guarantee (CGG) in 2021 at a virtual event attended by over 400 colleagues from across the careers profession, followed by three roundtables with policymakers, careers professionals and employers to discuss key areas of the Guarantee.
The CGG was further promoted in July 2023 the CDPG hosted an event in Parliament with the APPG for Skills, Careers and Employment to champion the Guarantee with politicians and policymakers, with a specially commissioned report from iCeGC at the University of Derby on Investing in careers - an analysis of the cost and benefits of investing to achieve the Guarantee.
The CGG has evolved and the updated version can be viewed here.
CEC Careers Impact Leadership Reviews
The Careers Enterprise Company are excited to share with you the new Careers Impact internal leadership review, an approach that provides a shared language of how careers can be positioned as a driver for college improvement. The internal leadership review supports Education Leader engagement, allowing you to embed a quality assured, sustainable and strategic approach to careers leadership in your provision. It involves a structured conversation focusing on six themes, each aligned to the Gatsby Benchmarks, and it enables leaders to identify effective action areas to drive continuous improvement.
The process includes a free digital feature to record and analyse responses in Compass+/Compass, with data visualisations to aid strategic action-planning with SLT and governors.
Getting started
1. Visit the Resource Directory to further your understanding of the internal leadership review and how to prepare for one.
2. Learn more about preparing for and recording a review by joining our webinar. Join using the link below:
Wednesday 24th November 3-4pm
The Careers Enterprise Company Action Research Report and Toolkit 2023/24
In October 2023, The Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC), in partnership with the Association of Colleges (AoC) created the opportunity for colleges and independent training providers to participate in a careers education-focused action research project.
Action research is a powerful tool which promotes innovation and improvement within a range of professional sectors as day-to-day practitioners are empowered to identify issues, find solutions and build in best practice within their everyday working environment.
Three providers were selected to run their own research project, Coventry College, Leicester College and The Learning Curve Group. This report aims to capture the learnings from the projects and to provide a toolkit in order to support other post-16 providers develop their CEIAG provision. The report highlights some great practice in preparing students for hybrid working environments; managing systemic change to ensure high quality careers provision across a multi-site institution; and increasing work experience opportunities for learners with additional needs.
We hope you find it a useful document and that you can use it to develop your own effective careers education programmes.
Click here to view the Action Research Report and Toolkit Click here to watch the action research projects webinar
CEC Careers Provider Meet & Greet - Thursday 5th December 11am – 12 noon
An opportunity to meet a selection of providers who have products and services to offer in the careers sector. Structured to allow you to meet 4 providers in this hour session, via a series of breakout room groups, you will hear a short presentation from each provider and can ask questions about their offer. A no obligation, neutral space to find out more. All providers have been selected for their relevance to the sector.
When: Dec 5, 2024 11:00 AM London
Register in advance for this meeting:
https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZMocOiprjIuHtGl0ENmubS-fi5-tkw6nGlR
After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.
Showcasing Best Practice
Please view the following short films showcasing some innovative work in careers education being done in three colleges. The films have been produced by the colleges with support from the Careers and Enterprise Company and focus on linking sustainability and careers, developing a skills framework and creating effective employer engagement.