Careers Related Learning « Bridgewater School

Research suggests that even at the young age of three or four, children are already starting to form their first aspirations in later life. By six they are starting to have opinions on what they think they can or can’t do in the future. And by the time they’re 10, young people start to make decisions which could go on to limit their future options. We believe it is vital to provide children with knowledge about the world of work and to develop a range of skills and aspirations that will benefit their future learning and readiness for their future career.

Bridgewater joined a pilot programme led by the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (NELEP) to strengthen careers learning in primary school. Whilst participating in this partnership, we used the Gatsby Benchmarks to develop careers related opportunities for our pupils. To support our pupils we use Careers related learning as a driver in our Enquiry Based Learning units each term. Where each unit will focus on one career, their skills, routes into the profession and what they do. We believe that this helps to raise aspirations and give the children an opportunity to learn about the variety of jobs open to them and the fantastic range of opportunities we have in the region. Through this, Bridgewater pupils gain a broader understanding of the routes to get into work and training, including the essential skills and attitudes required to be successful in both further study and in the workplace.

To further support our pupils, we aim to develop the skills of our learners. To support this we are part of the Skills Builder Partnership. In school, we use Skills Builder to help to track and set targets of the skills that our pupils will need to develop in their school and working lives. The essential skills are taught through every lesson and are celebrated each week in our Achievers Assemblies.

In the summer of 2022, we were delighted to be accredited with the Skills Builder Silver Award.