Case study: success in CEIAG

Neil Wilson, assistant principal at Waterhead Academy and member of the CEIAG team, tells us about the academy’s successful personal development programme 

Waterhead Academy is a popular and community-focused 11-16 academy located in Oldham, Greater Manchester and is part of the South Pennine Academies Trust. Our core values of responsibility, determination and success are integral to our whole school personal development programme into which Careers Education Information Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) is incorporated.

The personal development programme at Waterhead Academy aims to provide our students with a wide range of opportunities to develop their individual character, contribute positively to the community, and prepare them for their next stage of education, training or employment. The CEIAG team at the academy consists of me, Mrs Holdsworth (positive steps careers adviser), Mr Oliver (college and university partnership co-ordinator), Anna Short (enterprise adviser; Boo Marketing), Michaela Andrew (enterprise co-ordinator; Bridge GM; Greater Manchester Combine Authority) and Douglas King (appointed CEIAG link governor). 

Waterhead Academy is a Careers and Enterprise Company Lead Hub School for the Metropolitan Borough of Oldham, and I am an appointed SLE for the Bright Futures Alliance Trust to support schools within Greater Manchester in developing and reviewing their CEIAG provision. Furthermore, the academy is one of only a few schools nationally to be awarded Partner School Status with the national organisation Speakers for Schools.

By working collaboratively with other schools, it is envisaged that our employer engagement strategy will act as a sustainable model to facilitate future school and business collaborations throughout the Borough of Oldham and nationwide. The academy has been awarded the nationally recognised Quality in Careers Standard Award, and was identified nationally as a best a practice school for CEIAG provision.

As part of statutory careers provision all secondary schools in England should aim to meet the eight Gatsby Benchmarks; these define what world class careers provision in education looks like, and provide a clear framework for organising the careers provision at schools or colleges throughout England. The Careers and Enterprise Company provides support to schools in working towards achieving these objectives. The eight Gatsby benchmarks of Good Career Guidance 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. 

During identified termly points throughout the academic year, schools undertake a compass tool evaluation to identify and review their progress in relation to achieving the benchmarks. The most recent compass tool analysis that Waterhead Academy completed identified 100% compliance within all eight areas of the Gatsby Benchmark framework. 

Another indicator that schools and external stakeholders analyse when reviewing a schools CEIAG strategy are the year 11 leavers destination data: NEET figures (Not in Education, Employment, or Training). The 2021 Waterhead Academy NEET figure was 0.7% in comparison to the national NEET figure of 2.2%. 

Students throughout all year groups participate in a range of college, university and work placed visits, receive inspirational presentations, develop teamwork skills through the Duke of Edinburgh Award, contribute to community projects, participate in careers-based award schemes as well as having the opportunity to represent the Academy in a range of leadership roles. 

The curriculum offer utilises a range of delivery methods including visiting guest speakers, assemblies, bespoke CEIAG workshops, workplace visits and employer led curriculum learning. To facilitate the most appropriate CEIAG presentations all students complete a careers sector analysis review at the beginning of each academic year to identify their preferred areas of interest. 

The breadth of the curriculum offer ensures maximum impact and is of most benefit to the young people who attend the Academy. All CEIAG student experiences are recorded and analysed through the CEIAG spread-sheet tracker that underpins each individual student’s progress in relation to them achieving the Gatsby Benchmarks. 

The Academy has developed a range of successful employer engagement and enterprise partnerships with regional and national organisations inclusive of the NHS, Highways Agency, Greater Manchester Fire Service, Greater Manchester Police, KPMG, BBC, First Choice Homes and DHL. Our portfolio of business partnerships plays an integral role in the range of employer engagement opportunities that our students are able to participate in. These partnerships are also integral to facilitating the year 10 work sector visits programme. 

The Academy has a long-standing and successful partnership with Positive Steps (the matrix Standard accredited organisation that provides the statutory careers information, advice and guidance service in Oldham, Rochdale and Tameside). 

Positive Steps provides the Academy with access to a suite of careers resources along with the expertise of a highly qualified and impartial Careers Adviser. The annual Service Delivery Agreement is aligned with supporting the Academy in working towards achieving all of the Gatsby Benchmarks and enables systems and processes to be regularly reviewed.