Clare Mount Specialist Sports College Role Models and Catalysts for Change
Careers
Welcome
‘Leaders have established an impressive preparation for adulthood curriculum. Students in the sixth form receive carefully planned work experience opportunities. They meet many potential employers and receive excellent careers advice and guidance. They are very well prepared for their next stage of education, employment or training’
Ofsted Inspection Report 2021
Welcome to our Careers area.
All pupils benefit from Careers Education throughout years 7-11 and into sixth form. The curriculum, designed in collaboration by the Careers Leader and Careers Advisor, ensures that all pupils have access to a detailed programme of study as well as participating in a range of different events and opportunities which will develop their employability skills. The curriculum has been planned to ensure that pupils are fully prepared for the next stage of their lives when they leave Clare Mount.
Careers Education lessons are delivered in Preparation for Adulthood lessons in Key Stage 3 and 4 and during Personal, Social and Development lessons in sixth form. Pupils also benefit from lessons, discussions and activities linked to careers by their subject specific teachers.
Clare Mount prides itself on the partnerships it has formed with local employers, further education colleges and training providers. These links ensure that our pupils have continued access to encounters with employers, experiences of workplaces and visits to FE providers.
Work Experience is extremely important to prepare our young people for their futures. All Year 11 pupils will complete a full week of work experience in the Spring Term and all sixth form pupils attend a weekly work experience placement running throughout the academic year. In line with the new changes to Work Experience guidance in September 2025, we are developing a programme to ensure that we meet the mandated requirements. This should include two weeks of ‘meaningful’ work experience for all secondary school students split into one week of varied activities for Key Stage 3 and one week of placements for Key Stage 4. Meaningful work experience could include work shadowing, workplace visits, talks (virtual/in person) and work-related projects.
Aims & Objectives
Aims
All pupils are entitled to high quality career education and guidance as part of their overall education. The Careers Leader, Careers Advisor and school teaching staff will work together to ensure that all pupils are well-informed, knowledgeable, confident and prepared for further education and/or employment when they leave Clare Mount.
Careers education and guidance play a major part in helping young people choose pathways that suit their interests, abilities and individual needs. A strong careers programme helps avoid disengagement, puts school learning into a wider and more relevant context, and helps raise aspirations. Clare Mount Specialist Sports College careers programme aims to help our students plan and manage their careers effectively, ensuring progression which is ambitious and aspirational.
The school is committed to fulfilling the requirements of all 8 Gatsby Benchmarks.
BM1 A stable Careers programme
BM2 Learning from Career and labour market information
BM3 Addressing the needs of each student
BM4 Linking curriculum learning to careers
BM5 Encounters with employers and employees
BM6 Experience of workplaces
BM7 Encounters with further and higher education
BM8 Personal Guidance
Objectives
- To develop links between subject learning and careers
- To develop employability and enterprise skills, such as teamwork, problem solving, initiative and communication.
- To help students to plan and take control of their future, making informed choices at key points in their education.
- To provide students with the relevant careers inspiration and guidance that is suitable to their personal needs including age, ability, attitudes and aptitudes.
- To provide students with a comprehensive understanding of opportunities post 16 and post 18 including traineeships, apprenticeships, school leaver programmes, HE, FE, employment and training opportunities.
- To help students to reflect on themselves – their abilities, skills, aptitudes and attitudes – so that they can use this knowledge to consider their development.
- To provide students with impartial advice about options that are available to them.
- To provide equality of access to careers inspiration and guidance.
Labour Market Information
What is Labour Market Information?
Labour Market Information, often shortened to LMI, is a collection of facts and figures about employment which help us understand the local and national job market more. This information includes skills required for jobs, demand for jobs and potential growth sectors, and information on pay and conditions.
How will knowledge of the Labour Market help me?
Learning about the labour market can help you to make better, informed choices and decisions about your future. It can help you plan for the qualifications you may need to study for your dream job, understand the salary you will earn, learn how many job opportunities there are in your chosen profession and inform you about the job opportunities currently in your local area.
Current labour market information can be found on the website below:
Caeers Directory
Please find below some links to useful careers & employability websites:
Growth Platform - Our Liverpool based platform
Work Experience
Work Experience is organised by our Careers Advisor and Work Related Coordinator, Miss K Magnall. All students in Year 11 will participate in one week of Work Experience and all pupils in Key Stage 5 participate in a weekly Work Experience placement throughout the academic year.
Recently, the Government has announced changes to the expectations for pupils completing work experience. A new initiative, the Modern Work Experience Guarantee, has been developed to guarantee every young person access to high-quality, multiple workplace experiences, totalling 10 days’ worth throughout secondary education.
The guarantee will help young people to make informed choices and improve career readiness and employability by offering multiple, variable and targeted experiences throughout their education journey.
At Clare Mount we are developing a new programme to ensure that all pupils will meet the new mandate through a variety of virtual work experience projects, enterprise activities, employer encounters, workplace visits and much more.
Next Steps
When considering the next steps for our pupils, the information and links below may be useful.
Clare Mount Specialist Sports College 6th Form
The 6th Form College Birkenhead
Supported Internships
What is a Supported Internship?
A Supported Internship offers young people aged 16-24 with an Education, Health and Care Plan the opportunity to gain practical work-based learning experience, providing a smooth transition from education to paid employment and further study. Students on the internships spend 3 days a week in employment and 1 day a week at college developing employability skills such as CV building, job applications, interview skills and English and Maths.
Students
As part of your Careers programme you will have access to both the Xello programme and also Skills Builder. You are able to log into both systems during your PFA lessons and also during form time sessions. For information about both programmes please speak to your form tutor or Mrs Spencer.
The websites below are useful resources when thinking about what careers or apprenticeship you might be suited to. There are more useful links related to Careers under the Careers Directory section.
Parents & Carers
Below is a link to a padlet for the Wirral Preparation for Adulthood Roadmap developed to help support and inform parents of SEND students on the Wirral. The information provided covers the following topics:
Education and Employment
Community Inclusion
Health and Wellbeing
Independent Living Skill
The two websites below provide up to date and relevant information about Careers, employment opportunities and apprenticeships.
Staff
Students currently use Xello during Prep For Adulthoof lessons to identify their strengths and weaknesses, be matched to different careers, complete career-related activities, write their own CV, log their work experience, etc. To watch a short video about Xello please click on the link below.
The websites below provide excellent information and advice about next steps for our pupils. They can be used in discussions with pupils during form time.
Teachers of Preparation for Adulthood (including Careers Education) please access the Preparation for Adulthood 2025/26 Folder on the Staff Shared Drive.
Employers & Other Agencies
Can you help with any of the following:
Work Experience Opportunities
Work Place Visits
Live/Virtual employer encounters
Careers Talks/presentations to students
Leading workshops to develop employability skills
‘Try a Trade’ workshop where you introduce our students to practical skills
Volunteering opportunities
Enterprise Projects
If you are willing to contribute to our Careers programme at Clare Mount school, please get in touch with our Careers Leader. (See 'Contact Us' section further down this page)
Careers Calendar
Provider Access Legislation, Policies & Responsibilities
Provider Access Legislation sets out the school’s responsibility for allowing the access of external providers to pupils at Clare Mount for the purpose of giving them information about the providers education or training offer. This complies with the school’s legal obligations under ‘The Department of Education, July 2021: ‘Baker Clause’ and the Provider Access Legislation, January 2023’.
Preparation for Adulthood and Careers Policy sets out the school’s responsibilities for ensuring pupils receive appropriate and impartial Careers Education, Information and Guidance as part of their Careers Curriculum at Clare Mount Specialist Sport College. The policy is guided by the Gatsby Benchmarks and conforms to statutory requirements including DfE’s Careers Strategy and Baker Clause.
The following policies and documents can be found at the bottom of this page under ‘attachments’.
Provider Access Legislation
Preparation for Adulthood and Careers Policy
Staffing Responsibility Template
Contact Us
For more information about the Careers Programme at Clare Mount Specialist Sports College please contact:
Mrs J Spencer - Careers Leader
j.spencer@claremount.wirral.sch.uk
Miss K Magnall – Careers Advisor
k.magnall@claremount.wirral.sch.uk
School Phone Number - 0151 606 9440