“The BCC Business and Education Summit was well received during November 2016. On the subject of employability, the Barclays LifeSkills programme is a breath of fresh air. So is Kirstie Mackey, the Barclays Director responsible for the programme.”

LifeSkills Development

“Barclays made the LifeSkills material open source. Lots of hard work went into it,  so I suggest that more organisations should consider using it. It has sections to guide young people plus resources to help educators teach employability and life skills. It even has curriculum linked lessons and resources.

Other Speakers

“Ofsted reported on the significant number of student hours lost through classroom disruption.  Unfortunately, Sir Michael Wilshaw, MH Chief Inspector for Ofsted, seemed rather out of touch when I asked how to deal with the issue. There seemed to be too much carrot and not enough stick.”

“The most engaging speakers of the day were Sir Anthony Selsdon and Fraser Doherty. Sir Anthony is a refreshingly grounded Vice Chancellor of the University of Buckingham. Fraser Doherty is the 26-year old founder of Super Jam.”

“Fraser should upload his story to YouTube and every student should watch it. He took a family jam recipe at the age of 16 and conquered the world with it. Success  didn’t come without valuable lessons.  I’ll concede that I’m a little jealous (who wouldn’t be?), but he is an inspiration.”

Work placements improve employability?

“There is a consensus on some of the shortcomings with employability education among secondary schools. Student prospects improve when employer links are stronger. Perhaps secondary schools should work harder to develop strong links with local businesses.”

“Gaining relevant work experience fundamentally improves student career prospects. Over 90% of employers value relevant work experience when interviewing candidates. So, it’s disappointing to learn that fewer than 40% of employers offer work placements to students.”

“Work placements often lead to apprenticeships with the same employer, so what are employers waiting for?  I urge them to pick the phone and talk to their local College or Secondary School.”

“I look forward to seeing how this summit stimulates all of the moving parts to bridge the gap between education and employment.  #bridgethegap”