Careers : Our Vision

 

At Northampton School for Girls we recognise that an effective careers programme can help prepare young people for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences that lie ahead. In addition to the careers education, information, advice and guidance (CEIAG) delivered by staff and external careers advisers, we run events throughout the year that involve representatives from businesses and other organisations. 

Our careers programme is carefully crafted to equip all students with accurate, extensive and impartial guidance so that they can make informed choices about their future career options. Regardless of background, our approach focused on providing purpose, direction and opportunities for all our students, enabling them to flourish as individuals, become highly employable and achieve personal and economic well-being throughout their lives.

We place equal importance on our careers provision from Year 7 all the way through to Year 13, ensuring it is tailored to a student’s age and their individual needs. Careers is fully integrated into the curriculum, including the PSHE curriculum, at each key stage.  Alongside this, students benefit from enrichment activities such as visits to universities, guest speakers and local fairs and conventions. We are also proud to take part in National Careers Week  and our Applied Days in July, focus in on Careers opportunities and teamwork skills. 

By integrating careers into the day to day life at NSG, we raise each student’s aspirations and make clear the different career pathways open to them. The careers curriculum also equips our students with skills and personal qualities such as; social skills, confidence, resilience, adaptability, compassion, assertiveness and cultural capital that will allow them to compete in an increasingly competitive world.
Our structured CEIAG programme focuses on the following areas of provision:

• Developing skills and raising student aspirations; looking at their strengths and weaknesses
• Considering equality of opportunity in careers and making informed life choices
• Exploring employability skills and knowing the importance of online presence
• Identifying strengths, career options and goal setting as part of the GCSE options process
• Understanding how to access and be prepared for the world of work.
• Knowing how to research careers information and different options and pathways
• Access to an independent and impartial careers advisor who meets with students informally through “drop ins” and through bookable sessions. They work closely with our students in small groups and in individual one-to-one meetings to discuss students’ futures and guide them in making well-informed decisions along the way
• Mentors who work with post 16 students to guide in their choices and decisions for life beyond NSG
• Understanding the importance of work-related skills; enterprise activities; voluntary opportunities; work placements and meeting a wide range of local and national employers and agencies

Within our curriculum and enrichment activities, we will open students’ eyes to the world of different careers and create a passion for learning and achievement. We have a wealth of information available to students and parents in our Careers Hub, which allows our school community to access up-to-date information and opportunities. 

All students at NSG have access to Unifrog, the complete destinations platform. Unifrog offers a wealth of guidance for students, parents, and teachers, allowing students to compare every opportunity and make informed decisions on their career pathway. Unifrog supports tutors and our careers adviser to carefully match opportunities to individual interests and aspirations, ensuring we raise our students’ awareness about all options available to them. We encourage our students to explore the different pathways at post-16, including apprenticeships and training, FE provision, and other 6th form providers

Enterprise and citizenship skills are a focus for tutor time, assemblies, lunchtime lectures and year group activities. These are then developed further during our annual Applied Week. 

At post-16, we focus on providing the knowledge students require to make the right decision for their future; they attend a national careers fair where they can weigh up the benefits of university against an apprenticeship or direct entry in the job market, whilst at school a strong PSHE programme supported with bespoke careers advice ensures that students feel supported to confidently make decisions about their future pathways.
CEIAG at Northampton School for Girls, includes working with a range of partners to bring about a breadth and depth to our provision. We work closely with Prospects to deliver our careers guidance and SEMLEP to provide up to date local information. 

We fully endorse the Gatsby Benchmarks and use them to guide, plan and monitor the effectiveness of our careers programme. Our programme of study for careers is underpinned by the Gatsby Benchmarks and our provision ensures that students receive the following:

1. A stable careers programme
2. Learning from career and labour market information
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil
4. Linking curriculum learning to careers
5. Encounters with employers and employees
6. Experiences of workplaces
7. Encounters with further and higher education
8. Personal guidance

Useful Information

NSG Careers Hub

The NSG Careers Hub has been designed for students and parents to bring together a range of information in a place that is easy for all to access. The Careers Hub offers guides for parents, information about career pathways, both within NSG and beyond and directs students to opportunities and experiences that are currently available.

Finding Futures

Finding Futures is a local Northamptonshire based company who offer careers advice. Their free digital Careers Magazine is packed full of careers advice, support, resources, labour market Information and an interesting article on Covid and careers.  Click here to access the magazine. 

If you feel that you, or your organisation, would be able to contribute to any of these events, or to other areas of our careers programme, please complete the ‘Can you help?’ form on the NSG Careers Hub. 

Our Alumni

We are in the early stages of developing our alumni profiles and welcome the opportunity to hear from any of our former students that would be interested in supporting our work, or who would be willing to update us on their progress since leaving Northampton School for Girls. 

This provision is coordinated by our  Senior leader Paul Parker  pparker@nsg.northants.sch.uk and supported by Lucy Adams, Careers Projects ,  ladams@nsg.northants.sch.uk  or by phone on 01604 679540. Opportunities for access can be found in our Provider Access Policy.

To complete our alumni form, please click on the link.