Careers Education
Careers Leader: Mr D Heard
Tel: 01276 702540
Careers Coordinator: Mrs S Murdoch
smurdoch@fernhillschool.org.uk
School Governor: Mrs Fiona Potter
Independent Careers Advisor: Joanne Laybourn
Tel: 07850 975813
Enterprise Advisor: Mrs S Mort SSE
Higher Education Outreach Network (HEON)
Introduction for Parents, Carers and Providers
Managing your career begins at school and now it is more important than ever to be aware of all options. Our careers programme begins in Year 7, students are encouraged to develop an understanding of themselves, their strengths and skills and to think about their future career choices.
Throughout the year, teaching time is allocated to every year group to enable students to further explore careers and identify the skills and qualifications they will need. A range of events and opportunities are organised throughout the school year, for example visits to local universities and businesses, STEM days, workshops and mock interviews.
The Careers Access Policy is updated every two years.
Evaluation, Feedback and Communication
The school evaluates the effects of its provision by looking at yearly progression to Further Education and employment data provided by Hampshire County Council, local colleges and the DfE. Students entering the English Baccalaureate (EBacc), staying in education or going on to employment after Key Stage 4 is 94%. Please see the destination data at the foot of the page. Please click here for the full Hampshire Futures activity survey report.
Parent and student feedback about careers events is actively sought. Following events, surveys are undertaken and the results are used to inform the school’s plans. Students also make the best career choices when the school and parents/carers work together. Please do contact us if you would like support to guide your child.
Joanne Laybourn - Careers Advisor
Joanne is our Independent Careers Advisor; she visits Fernhill School every Friday to offer 1:1 guidance to any student. She works closely with the school to support Year 9 students with GCSE options and Years 10 and 11 with college and apprenticeship applications. Joanne has an open door policy and students are very welcome to drop into the library at breaks to talk to her. She also attends various Parents' Evenings throughout the year to offer advice and support to parents. Parents may also contact her via email.
The aim is to ensure that every child has the opportunity to make the right decision about their future based on research, discussion and evaluation of the pathways open to them. Students can request an appointment using Jo’s email contact details above, or by visiting
Mrs Murdoch in the library.
Scottish & Southern Energy (SSE) Enterprise Advice Team
Through our partnership with EnterpriseM3 and the Careers & Enterprise Company, we are delighted to be working with Sarah Mort, Work Force Renewal Manager from SSE. She and her team regularly support events in school, provide opportunities to visit SSE premises and guide interested students via the mentoring programme to apply for SSE apprenticeships. Sarah’s team also provides broader information about the world of work and employability skills.
Higher Education Outreach Network (HEON)
The Higher Education Outreach Network (HEON) is a partnership of organisations including Farnborough College of Technology, local universities and other colleges working in Surrey and North East Hampshire. HEON staff regularly visit Fernhill School to deliver talks, skills and revision sessions across Year Groups 9 - 11. HEON support parent events throughout the year and Year 11 Students are invited to attend a summer school at The University of Surrey. Their aim is to encourage young people to progress to higher education, which can be via the traditional degree pathway, or a higher-level apprenticeship.
For more information about any of the above activities, or if you need advice please contact Mrs Murdoch.
If you are an organisation seeking to support our careers programme, please also see our Careers and Providers Access Policy for visitors to Fernhill School. This page and our policy is reviewed in the first half of the Spring term.
Careers Resources
The library has a well-stocked Careers Resource area and also provides access to:
- Hampshire Futures
Course: Hampshire Futures Careers Information Service (skillsandparticipation.co.uk)
- Career Companion: a one - stop portal for career and labour market information
https://www.fernhill.hants.sch.uk/curriculum/library-careers
- Fast Tomato (Yes, that’s right!): To take a quiz that will give you career suggestions based on your likes/dislikes follow this link and enter the code BQVM
https://ft.morrisby.com/account/signup
- E-Clips: To explore careers related to subjects you enjoy in school follow this link (the password is NOOSTO29)
https://www.eclips-online.co.uk/
Careers Education for Students
Careers education is delivered through our PSHE programme and assemblies. Our programme of opportunities and events links closely to The Gatsby Benchmarks, a set of criteria incorporated into the new government careers strategy for schools. The diagram below provides guidance about the eight benchmarks.
Image courtesy of https://www.careersinc.uk/delta-darton/policy-and-practice/ 23rd October 2019
The table below provides an overview of activities delivered to students. To find out more about each activity, please see the glossary at the end of the website page. Please note that Covid restrictions mean that careers opportunities will be delivered virtually from a growing range of providers. Again, for more information please see the glossary. New opportunities are promoted weekly to parents and carers via the Parent Bulletin and to students via Google Classroom and Tutor Email.
The following resources may help you to find the right A Level choices or apprenticeship:
https://www.studential.com/further-education/A-levels/how-to-choose-your-A-levels
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/explore-careers
https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/
www.ucas.com
College Applications
All students are required to stay in some form of education or training until the age of 18; this can be in college, through an apprenticeship or a work place with recognised training.
- Students must apply for a college place by Christmas at the latest.
- Popular courses fill up quickly.
- Help is available in the library after school every Monday and Thursday.
- We strongly advise all students to apply to TWO colleges, for back up and choice.
- If considering an apprenticeship, you must also apply for a college place, again as a back-up and to maintain choice.
Basingstoke, Farnborough and Guildford College offer apprenticeship routes. The Sixth Form College does not offer apprenticeships.
Go to college Open Evenings! All the information is sent to parents via parent mail, tutors and is provided at the Post 16 Options Evening held in September.
Colleges (the Sixth Form College, Farnborough especially) will ask if students have visited their open evening, as this indicates that the student is making an informed choice.
College Websites
Basingstoke College of Technology www.bcot.ac.uk
Farnborough College of Technology & University Centre www.farn-ct.ac.uk
Merrist Wood, Guildford and Farnham Colleges (and more) https://activatelearning.ac.uk
The Sixth Form College, Farnborough www.farnborough.ac.uk
Queen Mary’s College, Basingstoke https://www.qmc.ac.uk/
If you require any help, please use the contact information at the top of this document.
Glossary
https://www.army.mod.uk/who-we-are/our-schools-and-colleges/rma-sandhurst/community-engagement/rmas-stem-20/ Year 8 students visit this event, which features opportunities to meet a great range of STEM business stands, meet military organisations and participate in workshops.
https://www.hants.gov.uk/thingstodo/outdoorcentres/ourcentres/runways Year 7 visit Runways in the autumn term to build team work skills and get to know each other through outdoor activities.
https://www.heon.org.uk/parents/ Higher Education Outreach Network (HEON) is a partnership of colleges including Farnborough College of Technology and the University of Surrey, Royal Holloway University, The University of Law (Guildford) and The University of Creative Arts (Farnham). Their support for the school is extensive and includes mentoring, workshops across a range of subjects and campus visits.
https://learnliveuk.com/ Offers an interesting virtual range of career films and advice
https://www.pie.uk.com/ Performance in Education delivers careers education through performance, to raise student awareness about a range of careers topics. For example, KS4 Year 9 options.
https://www.pixl.org.uk/ KS3 students use Pixl Edge to begin to identify their strengths, the kind of person they are and skills they already have.
www.sse.com A leading provider of energy to UK homes. SSE is the school’s Enterprise Advice team, bringing the World of Work to school through their support for careers events in school, such as mock interviews, supporting our Careers Fair, and importantly working with and mentoring students wishing to pursue a career with SSE.
https://www.springpod.co.uk/work-experience/ Virtual work experience programmes in a range of career areas. Students gain certificates on completion.
https://www.teentech.com/ Year 9 students spend the day with STEM businesses taking part in challenges and catching up with the latest tech. The school reached the finals of the TeenTech Awards competition in 2020.
https://thebrilliantclub.org/ This charity works with schools across the UK to raise student entry to high profile universities. Students have visited The University of Oxford and Southampton University and completed a programme of work, graduating on completion.
Destination Data
Please click here for the full Hampshire Futures activity survey report.
