Government backs big expansion of the Liverpool City Region Careers Hub
A scheme launched earlier this year to link Liverpool city region schools with employers and training providers is to be extended to 120 schools and colleges across the region.
The Careers Hub was launched in January by the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) allowing 33 schools and colleges working together with universities, training providers, employers and career professionals to improve careers education.
However, extra Government funding has been secured to extend the hub’s reach to 120 schools and colleges across the city region.
The 120 schools and colleges will have access to support and funding, including an expert ‘Hub Lead’ to help coordinate activity and build networks, a central fund to support employer engagement activities, and training for a ‘Careers Leader’ in each school and college.
The hub will help them to meet the eight ‘Gatsby Benchmarks’ of careers education by supporting them to better engage with employers, link curriculum learning to careers, and enabling young people to gain experience of the workplace.
Careers Hubs have been set up with funding from The Careers and Enterprise Company to inspire and prepare young people for the fast-changing world of work and is a central part of the governments Careers Strategy to help transform careers education.
The eight Gatsby Benchmarks are A stable careers programme; Learning from career and labour market information; Addressing the needs of each pupil; Linking curriculum learning to careers; Encounters with employers and employees; Experiences of workplaces; Encounters with further and higher education; Personal guidance. Steve Rotheram, Metro Mayor of the Liverpool City Region, said:
“This expansion builds on the success of the Liverpool Careers Hub, meaning we can support more young people in reaching their full potential.”
“Whether they are looking into work experience, moving onto an apprenticeship or training and educational options, we are giving them crucial information with which to make positive decisions about their future.”
Asif Hamid MBE, Chair of the Liverpool City Region Local Enterprise Partnership said:
“The Careers Hub will ensure our young people have more opportunities to connect with the world of work and future employers. By building on the success of our Enterprise Advisor Network we will ensure students are given timely and relevant careers advice and meaningful work experience. Importantly, it will also enable businesses to raise awareness of the skills and attitudes that they require from their future workforce.
“Having a dedicated Careers Hub will pay dividends for the future our City Region leading to improved employment opportunities for those who live and work here.”
Careers Hubs have been set up with funding from The Careers and Enterprise Company to inspire and prepare young people for the fast-changing world of work and is a central part of the governments Careers Strategy to help transform careers education.
And Claudia Harris, chief executive of The Careers & Enterprise Company, added: “Careers education is improving across the country. The accelerated progress we’re seeing in Liverpool shows that this model is working and delivering for young people, with schools and colleges in this first wave of Careers Hubs already outperforming the national average across all aspects of careers education.”