In the UK today, we face a two-sided problem.

Young people, particularly those from less advantaged backgrounds, are not getting the essential access to careers education that they need in order to successfully transition into the world of work. Likewise, employers are missing out on opportunities to work with and employ talented young people, either because they are not recruiting from a diverse enough talent pool, and/or because they perceive that young people do not have the skills required for entry-level roles.

Aspirations are strongly correlated to knowing someone who works in a related job, and work experiences are a powerful catalyst for change in young people. Yet access to those opportunities is dependent on where young people live, their school, and their personal connections.

Work experiences can be a catalyst for change for young people who may have limited networks or come from workless households. This means disadvantaged young people with limited networks are even more reliant on schools for careers guidance and experiences of work, yet school provision remains patchy and inconsistent.

Key facts: 

• The Education and Employers Taskforce also found that students who experience four or more employer encounters will on average earn 18% more by the time they are 30. 
  
  
• 82% of scale-ups report that they could grow their company faster if the people who applied to them had the specific skills they needed. 
  
  
• The CBI lists low levels of skills in the workforce as the single biggest perceived threat to UK competitiveness in the next five years.
  
  
• By one popular estimate, 65% of children entering primary school today will ultimately end up working in completely new job types that don’t yet exist.
  
  
• ASPIRES, has reported that access to positive role models from a similar background at school holds strong potential for breaking long held societal attitudes around the types of careers appropriate for people from underrepresented backgrounds.
  
  
• The Education Endowment Foundation's (EEF) review of international evidence found that young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are disproportionately more likely to have career aspirations that don't match their educational goals.
  
  
• The EEF also identified a number of characteristics of good careers education, including giving students the chance to network with professionals in different jobs and allowing them to explore the different careers paths and options open to them.
  
  
• A survey of 10,000 children and 1,000 teachers by the Education and Employers Taskforce showed that starting early with career-related learning led to a better understanding of the importance of core subjects, increased confidence in schools with most economically disadvantaged pupils, and an understanding that boys and girls can do the same job.

With your support, we can improve social mobility, inclusivity and access to careers, levelling the playing field for those children and young people who need us most.

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