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Careers & Personal Development

At The Beaconsfield School we are committed to ensuring all students have access to impartial careers advice from third party agencies, support in school and access to employers who can advise students when considering their future options. 

Our named careers coordinator in school is Mrs Collingridge Please do get in touch if you have any specific careers queries.

Impartial careers advice in school is provided by Adviza. Our link worker is Lisa Goodman 

To ensure we are providing a balanced careers programme, we link our careers guidance to the Gatsby Benchmarks which have been explicitly referenced throughout the DfE’s Careers Strategy (December 2017) and the new Statuary Guidance for Careers (January 2018). These 8 benchmarks are outlined below:

  1. A stable careers programme
  2. Learning from 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

Aims of the Careers Programme

The main components of the programme are:

  1. a planned programme of CEAIG for all ages
  2. access to independent and impartial information on opportunities in learning and work
  3. access to individualised careers guidance and support
  4. experience of the workplace to develop key employability skills
  5. To identify and reduce the likelihood of students becoming NEET or dropping out through a variety of interventions.
  6. ensure students have interactions with a variety of colleges, training providers, employers and universities in order to make an informed decision.

To enable us to successfully meet each of these targets we have the following careers programme:


  1. PSHE classes on resilience
  2. PSHE classes on social media and jobs linked to that industry
  3. Enterprise week – focus on entrepreneurship
  4. Subject specific guest speakers


  1. PSHE classes on schools to life- looking at employability skills, realising how school is linked to their professional lives later on.
  2. PSHE classes on dream jobs and obstacles to obtaining it
  3. Guidance on presentation skills
  4. Enterprise week – focus on entrepreneurship
  5. Gifted and talented Oxbridge Workshops
  6. Subject specific guest speakers


  1. Thomas Education DISC assessment
  2. PSHE classes on employability skills
  3. PSHE classes on life aspirations, links to university
  4. PSHE classes on employed vs self-employed – benefits and drawbacks
  5. G & T students to attend Oxbridge Workshop
  6. Enterprise week – focus on entrepreneurship
  7. Guest speakers to advice on various career pathways


  1. CVs- improve CV writing skills
  2. PSHE class on achieving “dream job”
  3. PSHE class on skills for work
  4. PSHE class on back tracking – job-qualifications, education
  5. Career aptitude testing
  6. Visit to Oxford Brookes University
  7. Whole year group visit to Worldskills UK, Birmingham
  8. G & T students to attend Oxbridge Workshop
  9. Enterprise week – focus on entrepreneurship
  10. College taster day
  11. Guest speakers to advice on various career pathways
  12. Follow up with Thomas Education
  13. Adviza 1:1 impartial careers advice for pupil premium students

YEAR 11              

  1. Revisit CVs and complete job cover letter.
  2. Rotary Club coaching interviews (all students)
  3. Choices post 16, TBS 6th form, colleges & apprenticeships
  4. Enterprise week – focus on entrepreneurship
  5. 1:1 choices meeting with SLT
  6. PSHE Class on debating skills
  7. Follow up of Thomas Education DISC assessment
  8. Whole year group visit to Bucks Skills Show, Aylesbury
  9. Adviza 1:1 impartial careers advice for all students
  10. Small group workshops with school careers coordinator on post 16 choices


  1. Use of START data base for careers guidance
  2. Workshops with AIMAPPRENTICESHIPS
  3. One week work experience
  4. UCAS & Apprenticeship evening
  5. UCAS & apprenticeship workshop
  6. Guest speakers to advice on various career pathways



Work experience is an important component of work-related learning. It has an impact on young peoples’ motivation and maturation.

Aims of Work Experience

To enable students to:

  1. improve their communication and other key skills;
  2. become more aware of the skills and qualifications needed for work;
  3. improve their knowledge of one particular job area;
  4. learn how to research into labour market trends and employment opportunities;
  5. learn more about their own strengths and weaknesses;
  6. develop positive self-esteem.

All students are welcome to take part in five day’s work in Year 10 during their holidays. They can find their own placements or get some support and help from the Careers Service.

Our Year 12 students are given time to attend a work experience placement relevant to their career ambitions.

Support is available from the careers service although students are strongly encouraged to do their own research and enquiries, as this helps to develop important networking and application skills.

Extended work placements may be offered to some students through discussion with their year leader/head teacher throughout Year 10 and 11.


If you can offer careers talks, work place visits or subject specific career information we would love to hear from you. Please contact Mrs Collingridge on


Labour Market Information is readily available online, and can be used to check whether a students’ preferred career path is one which will be in demand in the future. It also provides useful information such as National Salary, Working Hours and Practices, and Common Tasks in each profession. A link to the latest labour market information is provided below.