A group of Year 9 students took part in the Feeding Britain’s Future initiative yesterday. This is a nationwide education programme that inspires young people about the world of work and builds their employability skills.

As part of the initiative, thirty-five students took part in a two hour careers workshop with two professionals from the food and grocery industry (Asda, Bristol). They completed exercises identifying personal skills and strengths along with those of their peers to help them think about their own future employability.

They talked about roles within large retail organisations and the qualities and attitudes needed to succeed. One of the professional speakers (and Quality Assurance Officer) was also partially sighted and came with his Guide Dog. He shared his experiences of succeeding in a career with disabilities and how employers support this.

The workshop was facilitated by Emily Watton from Future First, which has been commissioned by IDG, a training and research charity to deliver Feeding Britain’s Future. The initiative is closely aligned with the Gatsby Benchmarks for Good Career Guidance.

Commenting, Mr Dan Glover, Assistant Head – Teaching & Learning said, “Careers preparation at any stage in our students’ school life is critical and we were delighted to be able to take time to be a part of this fantastic workshop. The students were able to discuss their own employability while putting it in the context of real life scenarios, enabling them to think about their own skillset. We’re very grateful to IDG and to Future First but especially to the ASDA volunteers for giving up their time on behalf of our students.”