Year 10 enjoy the World of Work

As part of their career journey, approximately 240 Year 10 students recently returned from their work experience placements and the results have been overwhelmingly positive. A valuable part of the students’ careers education throughout their time at Bishop Luffa, this experience has not only given them a glimpse into the world of work, but also allowed them to develop a wide range of essential skills that will benefit them in both their future studies and careers.

Students developed communication skills, time management, teamwork, problem solving, professionalism and most notably confidence, becoming more comfortable in their abilities and interactions with others. Employers commented on how keen students were to get involved and their willingness to learn, commenting: ‘very attentive‘, ‘brilliant at taking instructions’, ‘amazed me with his questions’, ‘extremely helpful’, ‘an excellent team player’, ‘polite, punctual’, ‘a credit to the school’, ‘we want to keep him!’.

Students successfully organised work placements with a whole range of employers including: Airbus, Barnardo’s Retail Store, Brinsbury College, Chichester College, Collaborate Global, Crimsham Farm, Goodwood, Heirlooms, Hills Plants, Jam Café, John Lewis, Mary Rose Museum, Noviun Architects, Portsmouth University, Rolls Royce, Royal Navy, SGN and many more. Many students returned to their old primary schools and nurseries to find out more about working in education and childcare. 

Some of the highlights identified by students during their placements included: designing a house, developing social skills, applying physics to real world problems, observing vet operations, welding, designing posters, web design, teaching English and Maths, building bikes, creating a massive display, bricklaying, and how to health check snakes!

We are very proud of all the Year 10 students for making the most of their work experience. The positive feedback about their work ethic and attitudes reinforces the importance of providing such real-world experience.

Reflections from Hari (10Sherborne):

I just wanted to share my incredible experience during my work placement at Kamson Pharmacy. It was truly an eye-opening and rewarding journey that gave me valuable insights into the industry that helped me grow personally and professionally. I highly recommend applying for opportunities like this. It's a great way to build confidence and gain valuable insight on what work is like. 

Reflections from Evie (10Sherborne):

For my work experience, I worked for a company called Invyte. Invyte is a boutique event agency specialising in end-to-end event management, guest registration, venue finding and event technology. My mum's company Liberty Global uses Invyte to help with some of their larger business’s opportunities. My first couple of days were spent in the office going through a specific company event. My job was to find hotels nearby at sustainable prices and also find them a uniform to wear for the event. I enjoyed this, but unfortunately, I spent around four hours trying to find a good hotel. My favourite part of this experience was going out into the field, which was London. We looked over London at different venues and luxury boats. We analysed them, made a PowerPoint slide and then headed to Liberty Global office building where I had to present the information that we found out about various venues and to a high valued boss. I chose this particular placement because this is the type of job that I will be doing in the future. The skills that I have learned from this job is how to manage money, bargain, analyse venues and to not be afraid during meetings. I would recommend this placement to other students if this is the profession that they would like to go forward with it is phenomenal and one of the best experiences I've ever done. 

We are very grateful to everyone involved in supporting our work experience programme. Please get in touch with me at hoppa@bishopluffa.org.uk if you work for a company who may be able to offer a work experience opportunity in the future.

Angie Hopp, Careers Coordinator