EMPLOYABILITY
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CHARLOTTE SELLEY,
T
CAREERS LEAD, PENRICE ACADEMY, ST AUSTELL, CORNWALL
AND NATIONAL CAREERS LEADER OF THE YEAR 2018
C
harlotte oversees careers and enterprise provision from
Year 7 to Year 11. A teacher for more than 40 years, she was
chosen as the Careers & Enterprise Company’s National
Careers Leader of the Year in July.
• Named careers leaders are
responsible and accountable
for delivering schools’
careers programmes.
• Schools must meet the eight
Gatsby Benchmarks by the
end of 2020.
• Here, three careers leaders
provide insights on their careers
strategies and advice for peers.
“Five years ago, after 37 years, I retired from teaching at Penrice
Academy – a role which included organising careers and work experience.
However, I returned for one day a week to continue my role as a careers
leader and that has grown to three days a week.
I love my job, I enjoy working with the students and helping them
decide on suitable pathways; working with employers is an integral part
of my role. I also value talking to colleagues and seeking their advice.
I think the new careers strategy is brilliant because it simplifies what
we’ve been trying to achieve. Having the eight benchmarks to work
towards gives the programme structure. To achieve these benchmarks, it
is crucial to have the support of the leadership team. I have a great line
manager, an assistant principal, who helps me to achieve the school’s aims
and recognises my work.
However, for full-time teachers or those just starting out, it can be
difficult. When I was teaching as well, I found myself working weekends
to fit in the careers work. My advice would be to tackle one benchmark
at a time. Don’t try to do everything at once. Similarly, you could start
with one year group and follow them through, it really depends on
your school.
It is vital to build up a list of employer contacts. Networking is
important. I work with our enterprise advisers to look for potential
employers to support our schooI. We are building alumni – these
are our future leaders. I have a past student, now an HR
manager, who is more than willing to attend assemblies,
workshops and take on work experience students. It all
comes back to building networks and relationships.”
LEARN MORE
The Careers & Enterprise Company provides
a guide to understanding the role of the
careers leader. bit.ly/CECCareersLeaders
“Tackle one
benchmark at a
time or start with
one year group”
FUTURE TALENT // 17