Vision StatementAt The Nobel School we are committed to provide an outstanding Careers Education and Information, Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) programme for all students. CEIAG can play a key role in promoting good learning by helping students to focus on good action planning to attain their long term goals. All CEIAG at The Nobel School is aspirational, impartial and unbiased, so that our students are able to prepare themselves for a world of work that is changing rapidly; young people now are likely to experience five to eight major career changes in their lives in a variety of industry sectors. They will also be experiencing more fluid forms of working with increasing casual, contract and part-time work options. |
We are committed to:
- Securing independent and impartial careers guidance for students in Yrs 8-13 that includes information on the full range of education and training options, including apprenticeships and vocational pathways
- Using the Gatsby Benchmarks to develop and improve our CEIAG provision, working towards accreditation for the Quality in Careers Standard by December 2021. The Quality in Careers Standard has been structured, and will be updated as required, to ensure educational institutions meet the requirements of legislation, careers strategy and Government guidelines relating to CEIAG as well as the Gatsby Benchmarks. It provides a framework for both the delivery and for the evaluation of CEIAG and the process can help to provide independent, objective evidence for inspections (e.g., Ofsted). If a secondary school or a college holds the national Quality in Careers Standard, parents can be assured that it provides its students with careers support of the quality of the best.
The Headteacher commented on this: “A fundamental part of school life is to prepare students for life after school. The Gatsby Benchmarks are an inherent part of what we do at school because we think they are at the heart of what makes a good Nobelian.” M. Henson 2019 - Recognising the importance of providing young people with real-life contacts and experiences from the world of work
- Working closely with Services for Young People and our Enterprise advisor.
Information for Employers
We recognise the importance of strong links with local and national businesses to support our careers education, information, advice and guidance.
We support and organise work-shadowing and work-experience activities for years 8, 10 and 12; and secure a wide-range of guest speakers through the ‘Speakers for Schools’ programme. This provides lectures/presentations to tailored groups with an interest in specific careers. We run these sessions on a flexible arrangement to support the availability of the employer/employee and can run these in classrooms or the auditorium depending on the interest for the career. Our tiered auditorium can cater for up to 250 students at one time.
Our website has several hyperlinks to local employer websites which highlight current vacancies, and we provide in-school support to help students with applications and research additional information relating to company profiles. Local job vacancies sent in by email are also advertised on our public display screens around the school and updated monthly to reflect current vacancies.
If you would like to be involved in delivering future talks or are able to support our work experience programme or would like us to promote your vacancies then please contact:
jemma.savo@nobel.herts.sch.uk
- NHS
- MBDA
- PWC
- Mercedes Benz
- Morgan Sindall
- Morrison Utilities
- Willmott Dixon
- Foster and Partners
- Element
- Autolus
- TBOS
- Tesco
- Wates
Information for Parents
Parents and carers play a very significant role in helping students to make informed choices about their study options and decisions about their future careers. We would encourage you to discuss with your child their options and future aspirations.
There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach and we recognise that all students must be able to make informed decisions avoiding pre-conceived ideas or stereotypes. Students have access to individual career guidance from a qualified careers advisor from our partner Services for Young People.
We welcome parents and carers’ input and recommend that you attend activities at school such as GCSE and A-Level Options’ evenings. We also run career update sessions during the academic year with information about school activities and events as well as interactive use of our career platform Unifrog.
Should you wish to discuss your child’s future options, please contact their form tutor in the first instance or our careers leader via email at: jemma.savo@nobel.herts.sch.uk
Information for Staff
All staff contribute to CEIAG through their roles as form tutors and subject teachers. Through PSHE and tutor time, Form Tutors deliver specialist sessions. Heads of Year liaise with the Careers Coordinator to address the needs of all students, including support from teachers and external agencies, such as Services for Young People. Members of the Sixth Form team deliver PSHCE progression programmes for students applying both to universities and to training/employment, with input from the Careers Coordinator.
Staff have access to an internal SharePoint resource area. Resources include subject specific careers information PowerPoints and links to Nobel alumni career talks for subject specific careers. Posters identifying transferrable skills and future career options for each subject are used in lessons and on career noticeboards.
Information and Resources
We have a well-stocked careers library, situated in the main library, which is available to all students. The careers library includes specialist careers’ software and a wide-range of paper based resources, including higher education prospectuses.
Students in all years have access to our careers platform ‘Unifrog’. Regular assemblies for all year groups take place throughout the year led by the Careers Coordinator. Students complete Unifrog activities during PSHCE, form time and drop-down days. The Sixth form students use the platform to support their UCAS and apprenticeship applications.
Careers Programme
There is an extensive programme of events and lessons that is available to students from Year 7 to Year 13.
Year 7
- Nobel ABCs – Achieve your best, Build your character and Care for your Community
- Introduction to Unifrog
Year 8
- Take Your Child to Work Day (Spring Term) – Work shadowing
- Unifrog research activities
- Employer mentoring, through ‘Services for Young People’ – Enrichment day
- ‘Robot Rumble’ at MBDA
Year 9
- Post-14 Pathways guidance, including:
- use of Unifrog;
- interviews for students and parents with senior staff
- University of Herts (UH) Pathfinder visits
- Employer mentoring, through ‘Services for Young People’ with additional careers interviews as necessary
- ‘Robot Rumble’ and ‘Glider Challenge’ at MBDA
Year 10
- Year 10 work experience week (June)
- Use of Unifrog – checking GCSEs and career future requirements
- Careers fair
- Visits to North Herts College (NHC)
- Employer mentoring, through ‘Services for Young People’
- ‘Glider Challenge’ at MBDA
Year 11
- Post 16 Pathways evening, with representation from NHC, AIM Apprenticeships, Develop Training and Nova Training
- Use of Unifrog – checking GCSEs against future FE, HE and apprenticeship routes
- Post 16 Pathways one-to-one guidance, including assistance with applications and interviews
- Visits to NHC & other local training providers
- At least one interview with ‘Services for Young People’ careers adviser
- ‘Discover’ day at University of Hertfordshire
- Support at GCSE results day from NHC and Nova Training, as well as individual meetings with senior staff
- Sixth Form Induction – ‘Creating your Vision’ session, study skills session from UH & introduction to post-18 destination options
Sixth Form
- Year 12 Parents’ Information Evening including information on apprenticeships
- Visit as available to the Skills Show in London
- Visit to UCAS Higher Education Convention
- Year 12 work experience week (June)
- One-to-one guidance on UCAS applications
- One-to-one guidance on apprenticeship and employment applications
- Apprentice workshops, delivered by ASK
- ‘Hidden Job Market’ workshop from Future First
- Student shadowing for a range of courses at UH
- Fashion Retail Academy workshop with ‘Visionpath’
- Drop in sessions with ‘Services for Young People’ advisers
Whole School
- Visiting speakers from local and national companies, including Nobel alumni
- Visits and talks from employees and employers – ‘Speakers for Schools’ programme
- Careers information and contact with employers in lessons
Careers Evaluation
We evaluate the quality of our careers provision and its impact on our students in a variety of ways. The School monitors and evaluates the destinations of students to help inform our future decisions and to support our curriculum development. The provision and evaluation of the Careers programme is part of the yearly School Improvement Plan. Our evaluations focus on a variety of matters including:
- what benefits students gain from particular CEIAG activities
- whether students have proper access to the programme
- whether we are making the best use of time and other resources
You can find further information here:
The Careerometer
Overview of different careers showing average salary and job description.
External providers who wish to develop links with Nobel may wish to view our provider access statement.
Careers Team
Careers Lead – Nick Brown (nick.brown@nobel.herts.sch.uk 01438 222600)
Careers Co-ordinator – Jemma Savo (jemma.savo@nobel.herts.sch.uk 01438 222600)
Head of Character – Steve Howells (steve.howells@nobel.herts.sch.uk 01438 222600)
