Banbury area school hosts 'Careers Experience Week' to expose students to different work opportunities

The Warriner School in Bloxham hosted a four-day Careers Experience Week from Tuesday June 29 to Friday July 2.

Students from year 11, aged 14 and 15, started each day with a briefing in the hall turning up in appropriate business attire. They then took part in five hours of workshops each day from a variety of providers such as charities like the The National Deaf Children's Society, local colleges and universities such as Activate Learning, Stratford upon Avon College, and Hartpury University.

Michael Rafferty, the motivation, careers and community lead at the Warriner School, said: "The main idea of the week was that many students when looking for work experience only go with what they know. It doesn't push their boundaries or expose them to opportunities, especially for some areas of our students.

"This allowed students to try a variety of jobs with more interaction than they might get in the work place. I wanted students to really look at different professions and skills and even if they don't follow those paths they would have an increased respect for other jobs."

The students also had workshops from local businesses and some professionally run experiences such as Amazing Animals from Heythrop Park and Medical Mavericks. The student each had a bespoke timetable designed to their tastes and interests, but also designed to push their boundaries, which included some CV writing and interviews skills.

There were around 50 workshops for students to choose from, and most took part in between 18-20 over the week.

Some of the Banbury area businesses who took part in the careers week, include Nothing but Footprints, Norbar Torque Tools, Dematic engineering, Alpine Racing, Bloxham Mill, Kick'n'Splash, 21 Violins, Spit'n'Sawdust, Pavement Cafe, 4th Corner, Amazing Animals, Fat Panda, David Green Decorating and Colourbox Photography.

A spokesperson for Norbar said: "Norbar always values the opportunity to share what we do with local students, to promote the relevance of and interest in STEM subjects and highlight Norbar as a provider of apprenticeship opportunities. The recent Work Experience Week hosted by Warriner School was such an opportunity and proved mutually beneficial."

Will Larner, a student who took part in the careers week, said: "I really enjoyed the careers week as it opened my eyes to how many careers are out there. It gave me a snapshot of what life is like in the real world."

Grace Evans, another student who took who took part, said: "It was interesting to learn a bit more about the details that go into different careers and how they overlap, and how some professions seemed a bit bizarre first but once explained made more sense. There are definitely more options than I thought."

Mr Rafferty added: "We especially like how it pushed some students to consider options they might not have before, due to their own background, and it has meant we've decided to make this the new model for work experience going forward. Many have eagerly said they will come again next year to participate in new workshops, and other businesses expressed interests post Covid going forward.

"We are thankful for all those who helped this week be a success."